


The United States Of Chaos

by Unde_cr



Series: State Stories [1]
Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Alaska’s a stalker, America has kids, America needs a nap, America’s states, And they’re crazy, Brothers America & England (Hetalia), Gen, Hawaii’s an innocent baby, Hetalia OCs, Humor, Original Character(s), Personified States, Something’s just not right with Florida, States, Trauma, US States, brotherly USUK, family fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-09
Updated: 2020-07-05
Packaged: 2021-03-01 02:02:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 47,151
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23077498
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Unde_cr/pseuds/Unde_cr
Summary: America has spent a lot of time and effort trying to conceal his kids from the rest of the world. However, given their nature, they were bound to be found out eventually. So when two small girls burst into the meeting room minutes after the meeting goes to lunch, America really wishes he could have just gotten a little more sleep.
Relationships: Minor or Background Relationship(s), Rusame if you squint - Relationship, Ships aren’t focus
Series: State Stories [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1677319
Comments: 28
Kudos: 185





	1. Early Morning

**Author's Note:**

> Fair warning, I don’t know a lot about the nature of the states, and so if I get something factually wrong, please tell me I want the story to be as accurate as possible.
> 
> Also, this is my first story, so I’m working out the buttons.

If you were to ask any of the nations to describe America, they may tell you that he’s childish, an idiot, irresponsible and many other things. But for as long as that list goes on, never would any of the nations have tell you he was a father; a very responsible, caring and incredibly overprotective father, and America has spent a considerable amount of effort to keep it that way.  
There were nations who knew about his children of course. His twin brother, Canada was indispensable when America needed an emergency babysitter, and there was also Romano and Lithuania who knew of the states from their time spent at America’s house. America suspected that Russia knew from their times of spying and secrecy, but he had never said anything about it.

However, despite the measures he took, America’s progeny seemed almost determined in being inadvertently discovered by the other nations.  
Like, for instance, that time where New York ran head first into England after a world meeting one day while on his way to speak with his dad, and awkwardly tried to play himself off as a clumsy human. England had, luckily, fallen for it, but found the encounter strange nonetheless. (America hasn’t hosted a world meeting in New York since).  
Or that other time where America had taken Virginia to a cafe for lunch to discuss certain politics and meetings, and Italy had stumbled into them and America pretended to be having lunch with some friend. Thankfully, Italy had been too distracted at that time to notice the girl’s unruly eyebrows, which to any other nation, would have been an instant connection to a certain querulous island nation.

Needless to say, the secret of the states was bound to be discovered, and that fact always seemed to set America on edge whenever a world meeting took place in his nation. But, he held his breath in a useless hope that they would remain hidden forever.

Ah, if only.

——————————

At this point, America couldn’t tell if it was his third alarm, or if it was one of his previous snoozes going off, but the ringing was disrupting his precious sleep, so he threw his hand to the source of the noise, and prodded until it was silent again. He very rarely got quiet moments, especially at the DC house, and privacy was almost nonexistent.  
With what little conscious he held at the present moment, he could feel a small weight at his left side, and a smaller weight on top of his right arm. His brain quickly associated those weights with his youngest daughters Alaska and Hawaii, who seemed to have a propensity for seeking him out during the night and cuddling close to him. Over the years, he had learnt not to move too much during his sleep, in order to provide maximum comfort for those two.  
The fourth ringing of the morning began, and America groaned quietly, still in no mood for properly waking up.

The double doors to his room opened to the sight of the personification of Louisiana, who had began to routinely drop into his room every morning and collect the two sleepy children. She walked over to the phone, which was still buzzing angrily, and stopped the alarm, before reaching out to the chestnut brunette girl and lifting her up. The girl gave a few lazy blinks, before drifting off to sleep again. Louisiana then lightly shook the shoulder of the ash-blonde girl, who seemed to be better at maintaining her consciousness, and slipped down off of the bed.  
"You really need ta get up if you want a chance of makin’ it to the meetin’ on time." Louise stated, taking hold of Alaska’s hand with her free hand.  
"Five more minutes..." America complained, bringing his now free arms to cover his eyes as Louisiana switched on his light.  
"You stay in bed any longer, an’ York an’ Mass’ are gonna be in here annoyin’ the crap outta ya, so I’d get movin’ if I were you." She said, leading the little girl out of the room, closing the door on the way out. America groaned. As much as he wanted to stay in bed, waking up to New York and Massachusetts was not a desire of his, especially not on a world meeting day. The meetings always took up most of his will to live for the day.  
The young nation slowly got up and headed towards his bathroom for a shower, regretting each of his life choices along the way. In a remarkable 45 minutes of brainless showering and dressing, America was about ready to leave his room, and face the day. He packed his laptop into his bag and he picked up his phone, no new messages, and promptly threw it on accident as the door was slammed open.  
He turned to see the personification of Massachusetts, complete with bushy brows, blond hair and face eerily similar to that of England, and New York, with his long black hair that fell over his left eye, and his infamous ‘I love NY’ hoodie.  
"Oh good. Yuh’re awake," came New York’s disappointment-tinted voice.  
"We were hoping to scare you awake," Massachusetts said, deflated.  
"Why am I not surprised?" America said with an eye roll and a smile.  
"Couldn’t you lie down and pretend to be asleep?" Massachusetts asked.  
"Yeah, humawh us a bit Pops." New York added.  
"Not in your lifetime, Jayden." America ruffled New York’s hair, the teenager in question looking up annoyed at him.  
"Whatevuh. I’m hungry, hope dere’s food." And with that, the two boys rushed away. America sighed and smiled the direction they took off, then he picked up his phone and put it in his pocket. For as much as he loved the two boys, he really hated when they woke him up.

Making his way to the dining room and kitchen, he found little Alaska and Hawaii sitting at the table waiting for food to be brought before them. Hawaii was still phasing in and out of consciousness, struggling to stay awake as any five year old would at seven in the morning. Meanwhile Alaska was happily reading a book beside her, humming a tune to herself.  
Hearing the sounds of altercation, America looked to the kitchen, seeing Louisiana and Virginia in a verbal struggle. America took a slight second to cringe at how the swarthy feminine France look-a-like complete with France’s eyes and slightly longer blonde hair tied into a bun, was arguing with the feminine England look-a-like complete with the cursed eyebrows, cutting green eyes, and long blonde hair tied into double pony-tails. He wondered if their constant habit of fighting was inherited from the two respective nations.  
Upon noticing his presence, Virginia straightened her stance and turned to face her father in his entirety.  
"Dad, can you please tell Louise to move aside and let me help with the cooking!" Virginia stated.  
"No! You’ll set the kitchen on fire knowin’ you!" Louise shouted to her sister, not bothered by her father’s presence.  
"One time! One fucking time, can you not just get over that already!" Virginia yelled at her younger sister.  
"Ginny calm down," America motioned at his daughter, "Louise, just let her help, it’ll make life easier." Louise gave her dad a questioning look, before handing her sister some ingredients, placing them down a little more forcibly to show her displeasure at having to share the kitchen. Virginia smiled smugly as she grabbed them, proud that she had gotten her way.  
America sat at the table besides his two youngest daughters, relieved that the fighting had stopped. He sighed, it was going to be a long day.  
"Why you dressed so early?" Alaska asked, glancing up from her book.  
"World meeting," America answered tiredly. Alaska mouthed an ‘ah’ as she went back to reading her book. That was enough of an explanation.  
Delaware made his way into the room, after seeking out his father to discuss scheduling. He was undeniably the most helpful of the states, perhaps a trait he had developed from being oldest of them all. Without Delaware, America really wouldn’t be able to get around and do anything. The kid knew how to plan ahead.

Slowly, tired and sleep deprived teens and children began to shuffle inside of the dining room, grabbing whatever food they felt like from the two chefs who were had gotten over the death glares, and sitting down in their respective seats. Breakfast was always interesting because, while the majority of the states took after their father, and adopted a distaste for the morning, other states had an unusual amount of energy, and couldn’t keep still and be quiet for the life of them. New York and Massachusetts had come running through the doors, even though they were at least physically eighteen, they still acted like young kids. New Jersey was also one with a stupid amount of energy, and she drifted over in their direction when they settled down at a table, sitting beside Pennsylvania, determined to piss her off as early as possible. The trio of Arizona, New Mexico and Oklahoma seemed to pass their energy between them, one being energetic, while the other two would stare and then it would rotate. California had her head planted firmly on the table, Oregon had pushed her plate of food out of the way before she had passed out. He sighed, knowing that once she woke up, she’d be a ball of uncontrollable energy. Washington smiled shyly at the two from across the room, her West coast siblings were quite the bunch. She joined the table where Montana, Idaho, Utah and Wyoming sat, Idaho already spitting nonsense about this and that. Mississippi and Alabama had already found there way in, which was surprising considering both boys weren’t keen on mornings. Many of the other late-rising states had also wandered into the kitchen, looking like zombies. America could only guess they had stumbled in here to make sure they could wish him luck, as they did before every world meeting hosted in their nation.

After breakfast had been eaten, America checked the time, and was a little shocked to see that he was running slightly ahead of schedule. Nonetheless, he casually stood and grabbed his bag.  
"Alright, well I’m off to the meeting then. Be back soon, and make sure to stay away from the meeting,” He said, knowing full well that some of the states would stalk the area.  
After a barrage of goodbyes and good lucks (because God only knows he’ll need them), and America assigning the duty of taking care of some of the younger states to some of the older, more responsible states, he was finally out the door and ready to get the day over with.  
Oh boy.


	2. The Chaos Begins

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poor little Hawaii has flashbacks. She could really use her dad’s comfort, it’s really unfortunate that there’s a bunch of nations right there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m back! Hooray. Ok, two things before we begin. First, I’m on Instagram and Tumblr (@under.cr and @under-cr respectively) and I have designs for each of the fifty states + other hetalia OCs, so head over there if you feel like it.   
> Second, I’m really trash at accents, and so I’m reliant upon the internet and accent generators, so if the accents are wrong (especially Denmark’s) please do let me know and I’ll change it. I’m not willing to give up on the accents just yet.

Now, I’m sure it can be easily surmised that America’s states are least to say… rumbustious. However, while that may be the case the states understand and mildly respect the rules and restrictions their father puts into place, in the rebellious way that is to be expected of teenagers and children, and American ones at that. And so, when America outlined the reasons that the states were to keep away from the other nations and remain largely hidden from the world, they, for the most part, followed.  
Although, as stated before, there had been many instances where a few of the states had come dangerously close to revealing themselves. Thankfully, none of these occurrences had ever been divulging, but they had been enough to give America some minor heart attacks. After America prohibited having world meetings in New York after said state’s ‘run in’ with England, the teen had complained extensively, as he lunged at any opportunity to show the world his capabilities and his achievements, but America refused to lift the ban, draconian as it may seem, in an overprotective fit. The boy had been incredibly moody following that conversation.

Needless to say, America was determined to maintain the safety and secrecy of his kids, although it was difficult to do so. Unfortunately for him, his children had inherited his overly-American ways, and seemed almost incapable of keeping their confidentiality.

But still, he had hope.

——————————

The meeting had been going about as well as one might expect. I could list off the happenings, but I’m sure you’re all to familiar with them all. After what seemed like decades (yet was a measly three and a half hours), Germany had called for a lunch break. America sighed in relief. While the majority of the nations found their way out of the meeting quickly, some of the nations decided to linger, including America.  
"You coming?" Canada asked his brother, when he noticed that he was taking his time.  
"Yeah dude! Give me a sec!" America responded, mustering all of the enthusiasm and energy he could. He had no intention of leaving the building just yet.  
You see, something America had picked up quickly was that there was always at least one of the states stalking the area around the meeting building. Today however, everything seemed quiet, too quiet, and quiet is not a word he often associated with the behavior of his kids, perhaps that sixth sense that parents have was kicking in, telling him to stay put. But also, he wanted to enjoy a moment of peace while he could (save for France and England’s bickering at the other side of the table).

As he stood and began organizing his papers (which were mostly covered in doodles and frivolous notes rather than serious thoughts), the double doors to the meeting room burst open. When he turned his head, instead of seeing one of the nations crashing in, he saw two small and familiar girls, one a tiny brunette who looked to be about five, maybe four years old who was crying her eyes out, and the other an ash-blond with a scarf around her neck who was holding the first girls hand in a panicked manner. The personification of Denmark stood behind the two girls, obviously concerned. America felt his heart drop to his stomach, and he froze on the spot.  
"Denmark, vat is zis?" Germany asked, obviously surprised and confused as to what to do.  
"I found dese two girls oudside. Dhe blonde one said tey needed to get in ta meeting room." Denmark stressed.  
"And so you brought them in with no hesitation?" England spat distressed.

"DADDY!" The brunette child cried loudly. With this America unfroze and rushed forward without care about the other nations. He knelt down and scooped the small Hawaiian girl into his arms, hushing and calming her. The other nations in the room stared at the interaction.  
"What happened?" America asked the not-crying girl in a phlegmatic and calm voice that surprised even himself.  
Alaska took a deep, audibly breath to calm her nerves, "We were out playing by ourselves and Kami started having flashbacks. I-I panicked and just brought her here," She said timidly.  
"Why were you by yourselves?" America questioned, a hint of scolding in his voice, but not enough to startle the poor girl. Alaska just shrugged, unwillingly to explain anything while her nerves were frayed. America placed his hand on her head affectionately, and looked at little Hawaii, who had fallen asleep with puffy eyes.

"America… do you.. know these girls?" Came the voice of the Brit behind him. Oh right, that was an issue he had to deal with now. America took a deep breath but it failed to calm every agitated muscle and pulse in his body.  
"Hahaha, yeah, fu-funny story that…" America stuttered, unsure how to explain. Alaska’s worried face dropped to an unamused expression.  
"The little one called you ‘daddy’" England began to put pieces together, connecting dots that America desperately did not want him to connect. And then, a Frenchman burst in to conversation.  
"Ohonhonhon! Are zese girls your daughters? Is zere something you are not telling us?" France asked in a sarcastic, slightly-mocking manner. However, when he glanced at the American’s face (that resembled a deer caught in headlights), and he looked between the identical eyes of the awake girl and America, he paused, and a look of shock dawned upon his face.  
"YOU HAVE BLOODY CHILDREN‽" England yelled. America cringed at the volume, which surely must’ve alerted some other nations who hadn’t made it too far out of the meeting hall, and woke the napping Hawaiian in his arms.

America closed his eyes for a few seconds and then reopened them. Even if he wanted nothing more than to keep this secret, there was nothing to be done about it now. He may as well come clean.  
"Yes, my states," America’s answer came out in a raspy voice. He cleared his throat, "My states are personified."  
"Vait, aren’t zere like… fifty states?" Germany asked, very shocked at the revelation. America nodded.  
"Baby Americas!" Italy celebrated, clinging to Germany, obviously oblivious to the intensity of the room’s atmosphere.  
"HOW CAN YOU HAVE FIFTY CHILDREN YOU BLOODY WANKER‽" England became hysterical. Not only was America a father, which was unbelievable enough as it was, but he had fifty children! The idea seemed absurd. But the nation sat, a tiny girl blinking awake in his arms and another child (who looked suspiciously like a miniature Russia) with identical eyes to America’s.  
Said nation put a finger to his mouth and hushed the older nation, he didn’t want any loud sounds to trigger more flashbacks for little Hawaii.

The doors to the meeting room now opened to three nations, China, Spain and Romano, who America could only assume heard England’s shouting and came to investigate.  
"What is with all the yelling, aru?" Ah, his suspicions were confirmed.  
"America’s states are personified!" Italy chimed happily. It took China a couple of seconds to process the information and connect it with the two tiny girls.  
"That stupid American is a father, aru‽" China said, confused and bewildered.  
"Hey! That’s rude!" The little blonde Alaskan argued, stepping forward as if to challenge to Asian nation.  
"You go, small America!" Italy giggled. Alaska’s stance instantly softened, and she tilted her head towards Italy like a puppy.  
Still on edge, America suggested, "Perhaps I should introduce these two to you all." He laughed nervously, standing and setting the now mostly-awake girl down.  
America motioned towards the ash-blonde girl, "This is Alaska, 49th state and my second youngest kid. She’s very sweet but can be a bit difficult sometimes," he told the nations, receiving a little huff from said child, "and this is Hawaii, the youngest of the states," he said motioning now to Hawaii.  
"Hi there Mr. Romano sir," Hawaii said sweetly with a happy wave. Romano gave a little wave back, uncomfortable with the new found attention the other nations were giving him.  
"YOU KNEW ABOUT THIS‽" England exploded.  
"That’s none of your business you whiny british bastard!"  
"How about you guys come to my house, the DC house after the second half of the meeting and I can properly introduce you guys to the states?" America suggested as he began to slowly back himself and his daughters out of the tense-aired meeting room.  
"But what about–" England started, but America had already left the meeting room, Hawaii and Alaska in tow.  
The rest of the nations were left in silence. A sly smile crept its way onto France’s face.  
"Ohonhonhon,"

America crouched down in front of his daughters when he felt they had some level of privacy.  
"Are you two alright?" He asked gently. Alaska looked up at him shyly.  
"Did we cause problems, we didn’t mean to." She told her father earnestly. She truly didn’t mean to cause her dad problems. She explained to her dad that they had been near the meeting room on an ‘adventure’ when Hawaii has lapsed into flashbacks. She had panicked, not knowing how to calm her down and so brought Hawaii to the meeting hall. When Alaska has seen the nations filing out of the building for lunch, the two had accidentally bumped into Denmark, who had brought them to the meeting room.  
America nodded along, he still had one question however, "What were you two doing by yourselves? I’m sure I told Kansas to look after you."  
"You did but, we uh..." Alaska started, obviously guilty of something. America raised an eyebrow.  
"We wanted to be independent like you and adventure!" Hawaii attempted time reconcile the situation to the best of her ability, but America just sighed. He pulled both of his daughters into a hug.   
"You understand that you have potentially risked the lives of your siblings right?" He said sternly and tired.  
Hawaii hid her face in her father’s bomber jacket, obviously embarrassed and a little ashamed. Alaska has a look of stubborn guilt on her face.

"Are you feeling better Kami?" America asked Hawaii, wanting to change the subject. He always felt bad when he made his children guilty, even if it was necessary for punishment, and right now he was exhausted.  
"Yeah," Hawaii rubbed at her eyes a little, the redness mostly died down, "I’m good." She beamed at her dad.  
America smiled back and stood back up, pulling out his phone, "Let’s call Kansas. She must be freaking out by now." Upon looking at his messages, there were 12 messages from the contact saved as, ‘Toto’ (an obvious joke between him and Kansas), and three missed calls. She really must be frantic by now. He called her.  
"Dad, dad! Oh my god, I’ve been trying to call you. Alaska and Hawaii.. I don’t know–"  
"It’s ok, they’re here with me," he interrupted.  
"Oh thank god. Where are you, I’ll come and pick ‘em up right now." She asked urgently.  
"We’re at the meeting building," America said, tiredly.  
"Oh." Kansas said, understanding the implications.   
"Don’t worry, we can talk about things after the second half of the meeting."  
"Oh, of course dad," Kansas said before hanging up the phone.  
America was too tired for this, honestly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hhhhhhh oh goodness America needs a nap. This chapter was longer than I expected it to be but anyway. Next chapter: a very awkward continuation of the meeting.   
> Ok, a few things now:  
> 1\. The nations in the room were: America (duh), Canada, England, France, Germany, Italy, Denmark, Spain, Romano and China. Other nations will be included, don’t fear. Not all of them will meet the states though.   
> 2\. France isn’t a creep, he just weirdly excited that he has grandchildren/nephews and nieces.   
> 3\. I didn’t want to paint Kansas as a terrible caretaker, she’s quite responsible with kids. Alaska is just very... anti-restriction and she usually drags Hawaii with her.   
> 4\. For anyone wondering, Hawaii’s human name is Kamalei (Kami as a nickname), and Alaska’s human name is Nikita.


	3. A Rather Awful Meeting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> America is less than thrilled to have the world breathing down his neck, and so attempts to avoid any confrontation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quick self-promo: if you wanna see how the states look, you can go to my Instagram (@unde.cr) or my Tumblr (@unde_cr) because I’m working on designing them all.

For all their flaws, the states were good kids. They understood that there were lines they couldn’t cross and rules they couldn’t break, but that wouldn’t stop them from getting as close as they physically could to doing so. It’s been well established thus far that they like to... hang out in places where they definitely weren’t supposed to be. Now, it’s impossible to group the states’ reasonings under one umbrella motive, there are fifty states after all and amongst them they encompass possibly every personality under the sun, but there are a few common incentives such as; curiosity (common with the younger states), suspicion, thrill, or ‘information-accumulation’ as Nevada had put it, eliciting merely a sigh and a hand rubbing the temple from his father.  
Even despite this headache inducing chaos, America can’t help but adore each and every one of them. Even the states that make his life a living, discordant hell, (looking at you Florida, California, and Texas). Each of the states were unique and had achieved so much, and America could be so proud of them at times. Such as 1869, when Wyoming became the first state to grant women suffrage. Or when the first automobile assembly line started up in Michigan in 1913. Or in 1941 when Mount Rushmore was complete, one of South Dakota’s greatest achievements. Or in 2003, when Massachusetts’ high court ruled that gays could marry. 

Needless to say, America’s pride and distress went hand-in-hand when in relation to his kids, but despite all the anger and havoc and overall exhaustion, he always saw his children and his life as a parent as a blessing. A gift, especially in those times of stress, where America could take a break and go on a picnic with some states, and be gifted flower crowns and jokes and some sense of respite from the hurdles life threw at him.

And as long as things stayed that way, he could deal with anything.

——————————

The second half of the meeting dragged on with an underlying atmosphere of edge. That is to say that there were an uncomfortable amount of eyes staring and then hastily looking away from a certain recently-revealed father. It seems word of the incident during the lunch break had spread to the world, and some nations were certainly more interested in others.  
England had been staring at him for a while, and America couldn’t tell if he was still in shock, or if he was angry for any number of reasons; he did his best to ignore the island nation. Japan, who sat beside America, seemed to be mulling over something. America wanted to ask what was up, but decided against it for the time being. On the other side of the room sat Spain and Russia, both who were staring him down, the former who America was sure wanted to see his old colonies like the doting colonizer he was, and the latter whom... America couldn’t tell exactly why he was staring so intensely. Something to do with Alaska he supposed. Occasionally, America could hear the ‘honhonhons’ of the France who was sitting not too far from him, and America could tell that Germany had been set on edge by the notion of the states based on the way he snapped quicker and more often than usual, and gave a stern glance or two America’s direction every now and then. Italy was practically bouncing off the walls, (which isn’t too uncommon, but given the circumstances...) and he was constantly chatting with his big brother, who seemed annoyed at the constant noise (but was secretly glad there was no more of a focus on him for the time being).  
And so, with the world breathing down his neck, America was counting the minutes, seconds, milliseconds if he could, wanting nothing more than to get out of the stupid meeting. He doubted the nations would bring up the states as a formal discussion during the meeting, with other means to attend to, so as long as he got out as soon as possible there wouldn’t be much of an interview.  
When Germany finally announced the meeting was over, America ran out of the room at top speed, aiming to make it to his car and get home as quick as possible. When he made it out of the building’s doorway however, his phone began to vibrate, indicating someone was trying to call him. He longed to ignore it, but a little voice in his head told him that with everything that’s happened today, it was probably better to answer it. He pulled out the device, and to his relief, it wasn’t one of the nations calling him, but his daughter Louisiana. He answered the called.  
"Hey Louise, what’s going on?"  
"A lot," she sighed, "first, how was the meetin’?" Oh great, if Louisiana was hesitant, things probably weren’t too great back at the house. That’s exactly what he wanted right now.  
"Shit, and that’s an optimistic way of putting it."  
"Aren’t the meetins always shit?" She asked, a hint of playfulness in her voice.  
"Yeah, but all the stupid chaos and crap was centered around me, and usually I like attention! But this sucked." He heard a tired laugh on the other line.  
"Well the chaos and crap ain’t quite ovah yet unfortunately. Summa the states’re freakin’ out. Wanted ta warn ya before you got home."  
"I appreciate it. Maybe I’ll take the long way then."  
"You do that. I gotta go now, see ya soon." America ended the call and sighed, the day wasn’t over just yet.

"America!" Came a British voice behind him. He jumped and turned, startled.  
"Oh, hey Britain dude! I really gotta get home, so I guess I’ll see you later!" However, his efforts to leave were stifled but England grabbing his arm.  
"You said that tomorrow we could go to your house and see the states, and I need an address to do so." While America really didn’t want to give him the address, knowing it would bring all sorts of hell to deal with tomorrow, he was exhausted and wanted nothing more than to have a moment of calm for himself. And so, he pulled out some scrap, torn bit of paper, wrote the address, and threw it at the Englishman, who promptly let go of his arm.  
"Tell whatever nations you like, just don’t bring too many of them, the house is loud enough as it is." America turned to leave, then stopped and looked back for a second, "And don’t come before 8:30, you’ll regret it."  
And with that, he scampered away leaving behind a troubled Englishman.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter is also out today, because I know you guys are expecting the nations to interact with the states!
> 
> England: hey, you said we could go to your house tomorrow.  
> America: fuck I did say that.


	4. A Crowded Entry Way

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The nations arrive at the DC house, and their tour guide isn’t so pleased to meet them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> With accents, please know that I am relying solely on my previous scant knowledge, some accent generators and some failed research, so if you have any tips, do let me know. Also, I do speak a bit of French, but not a ton, so if it’s wrong, do let me know.

America often times would wake up and believe that he was in a zoo, or a busy airport, or anywhere where there was crashing and shouting and loud noises being made by who knows what. Something shattering there, an altercation there, crying over that way, and so he would cover his head with his pillow and try his best to sleep and ignore everything. The states weren’t trying to be loud and disruptive, at least most of them weren’t, it really was just in their nature and there are fifty states who spent about half of their time in the house together. Despite the fights they often found themselves in, the states were a family, a dysfunctional, chaotic, hell-filled family that would stick together and support one another in the most dire of circumstances.  
Each of the states was broadly unique when you got to know them. Even states like the Dakotas, the identical twins that stuck together and were almost never seen without each other, were completely different from one another when you understood them. It was always something that shocked America, just how different they all were, how each of them brought something completely new to the table, and how they each altered the union.

Now, because of these varying personalities and circumstances, some states got along better than others. The thirteen seemed to get along with each other quite well, the north and the south still saw a slight dichotomy, but when the states grouped together, the thirteen could usually be seen all together. California was quite attached to her fellow western coast states, and Washington didn’t seem to mind her company. Oregon seemed hesitant to spend time with her, but would never say no to his big sister. Michigan, Wisconsin and Illinois tend to be around one another, which makes sense given the states’ proximities. Mississippi and Alabama were quite close, and Florida would usually be seen hanging out with the two. New Mexico, Arizona and Oklahoma would play together all the time, they even called themselves the three musketeers, and Alaska and Hawaii would stick together, both being the youngest.

Needless to say, the feel of the DC home shifted frequently because of the surfeit of different personalities, opinions, hobbies, and other such things. And so, every morning America woke at the DC house, he was presented with a new climate in the familiar environment. He was used to this, and yet he couldn’t help but be curious of how things would change when the nations intruded.

Well, he won’t have to wait long to find out.

——————————

America tried his very best to block out the blaring alarm that was ringing. His bed was warm and comforting, and so much more attractive than the tribulations the day before him promised in excess. He could feel those two familiar weights, the smaller one he associated with Hawaii curled up at his side, and the larger one he associated with Alaska, sprawled out at his right leg. Neither seemed too affected by the alarm, and so America simply lay.  
A few minutes later, the double doors to his room opened to reveal Louisiana, who had come by habit to collect the tiny sleeping children. She paced over to America’s alarm and turned it off, picking up little Hawaii as she did so. She walked over to Alaska and shook at her shoulder.  
"You need ta get up Daddy unless you want Mass ‘n York to come crashing through here." She said as Alaska sat up and rubbed her eyes, sliding down off of the bed. America groaned forebodingly. Louisiana grabbed Alaska’s hand and led her out of the room, closing the doors as gently as she could. Her father probably wanted every last second of sleep, and with the day that was coming, he needed it.  
There was an anxious yet excited buzz circulating the DC house. None of the states had ever formally met any of the nations aside from Canada, Romano and Lithuania, and no one knew exactly which nations would arrive. America knew he would probably have to have several talks with some of the states to insure that none of the nations were brutally killed, or cursed or poisoned or some awful combination of the three; a few of the states were particularly vengeful.

Just as America began to drift back to sleep, his bedroom doors burst open, and New York and Massachusetts ran into the room.  
"Wake up Pops!" New York cried as he jumped onto the bed, crashing into his father.  
"It’s time to get up!" Massachusetts shouted. America was less than pleased.  
"I’m awake, now go!" He shouted back. The two unruly states laughed together and then ran back out the room, proud of their achievement. America stared at the hallway as the two troublemakers ran away that slowly disappeared as the doors closed, leaving him in darkness. After a pause, he stood and began readying himself for the day.  
When he was about almost ready, there was a knock at the doors.  
"Come in." He said, quickly finishing buttoning his shirt.  
Delaware entered the room at the permission given.  
"Hey Anth. What’s going on?"  
"Well, I cleared your schedule; I assumed it was expected, also I organized the papers you asked me to, so the report should be easier to write now..." Delaware went on to list several other tasks he had completed. America was incredibly grateful his oldest child was so organized and helpful, there’s no way he could survive otherwise.  
"Oh, and also, your brother arrived just now. He was hoping to speak with you before the... incursion." America perked up. He hadn’t expected that.  
"Thank you Anthony. Tell Louise or Daniel or whoever is in the kitchen to save me some food." America requested.  
"Of course."  
America hurried down the halls and downstairs, saying good morning to a few of his kids on the way. In the living room, Maine was happily chatting to someone (it took America a second to realize it was Canada).   
"Hey guys!" America greeted.  
"Hey Al, how are you?" Canada asked his younger brother.  
"Alright right now. Heard you wanted to talk ‘bout something‽"  
"Yes, I wanted to ask aboot what’s happening..."

An hour later, England stood at the gates to the house at the address America had provided him with some other nations. The gate was silver, and proudly displayed fifty stars, aligned exactly like on America’s flag. He had no idea what to expect. He had never in his life thought America to be capable of raising a child, or fifty! He at least thought America would tell him about such things, they were brothers after all. But instead, America chose to raise his secret children in his secret house at the edge of his capital city, in secret.  
Beside the gate, there lay what looked to be a control panel, assumedly that would open the gate. There was a panel with numbers, and a button below labeled, ‘Guests’. He pushed it. After a second, a woman’s voice could be heard over a radio.  
"What purpose do you have here today?" She asked in an irritated voice. Italy chimed in,  
"Ve~ We’re here to see America and the small-Americas!" Germany looked down at him and sighed. The woman spoke once more,  
"Ah, the nations I presume. Wonderful," she sounded very sarcastic, "how many of you are there?"  
"Eight." England answered her after counting.  
"Alright. I’ll be one moment."

A minute later, the gate opened and there stood a girl with green eyes, horrendous British eyebrows, and blonde pigtails. She was wearing a black button up shirt and a navy blue skirt, some black tights and formal shoes. Her face displayed displeasure.  
"Hello, my name is Virginia, and you are to call me such and nothing else. Pops has foisted you onto me, and I’ve been told to give you a tour. Follow me please." She said gesturing the nations onto the path that led to the house. The house was nothing but opulent. It was a two story, very well-built mansion, and there was a massive front garden filled with flowers and hedges. The visiting nations couldn’t help but be surprise that the American owned such a house.  
"Vhy is America not giffing us zee tour?" Germany inquired.  
"Ve~ and why do you look like England?" Italy asked, very excited. Virginia turned, and gave a baleful stare towards the small Italian, who ran and huddled at Germany’s side.  
"Thanks for the reminder." She grated out, obviously pissed, she looked at Germany, her glare dying down to a more professional frown, "and Dad has to have certain conversations with some of the states to make sure there’s no foreign blood staining the carpets. I’d be thankful if I were you." Virginia have a glance over to England, and gave him a forceful stare as well.  
"Honhonhon, do you not like the Englishman, belle mademoiselle? Dites-moi, comment est-ce que vous aimez les hommes français?" France inquired, a flirtatious grin planted on his face.  
"I can assure you France that while English is my official language, I speak French, and I stated before that you are to call me Virginia and nothing else!" She spouted angrily seemingly more upset at the Frenchman failing to obey her command than at the perverse comment. After a second, she crossed her arms smugly, "And I warn you, Dad isn’t too keen on having you, or any of you nations flirting or doing other inappropriate things to me or my siblings, and if you don’t want to lose a few limbs, I’d recommend following." And with the nations, especially France, feeling anxious and wary, they continued their walk.  
They soon found themselves in the entry way of the house. It was very decorated, and there was a centre hall leading to stairs. When all of the nations made their way inside, Virginia shut the doors, and pulled out a walkie talkie.  
"Delaware, the nations are here, tell dad." A second later, a voice came over the walkie talkie, "Will do, I’ll be there in a second." And with that, Virginia put the walkie talkie away.  
"Who was that?" England asked.  
"Delaware, he’s assisting me on the tour because if a state tries to attack you, I may not be enough to pull them off of you."

Before any of the nations had a chance to further conversation, sounds of laughter came from the hall. A small boy came running down, looking behind him, obviously expecting to see someone following him, and ran straight into Russia. He stumbled back and fell over, bringing his hand to the back of his head upon sitting up. The boy was swarthy and had chocolate hair, a purple hair-clip holding longer bits of hair out of his eyes. He also had America’s blue eyes.  
"Ow! Oops, sorry!" He apologized, standing and looking up at the nation he ran into.  
"It not problem, small boy." The cold nation responded. Two other children rushed down the halls with equal excitement to the boy who had run into Russia. One was a girl, also swarthy with darker hair than the boy, and a feather in her hair, and the other, a boy with blond hair and blue eyes, both similar to America’s. Upon seeing the nations in the hall, the two slowed down, and stood beside the first boy. The blond haired boy’s face showed excitement.  
"Hey there strange people! I’m Oklahoma!" He exclaimed and waved. The girl with the feather nudged him.  
"Okie, I don’t think we’re meant to talk to them." She stage-whispered to him.  
"Why not?" The boy with the hair-clip asked also in stage-whisper.  
"No, it’s ok," came a new voice. The nations looked at the new person in the room, who looked exactly like America, but much shorter.  
The small children’s excitement grew.  
"Oh ok! I’m Arizona, it’s nice to meet you!" The little girl with the feather in her hair greeted.  
"And I’m New Mexico!" The boy with the hair-clip greeted with equal enthusiasm.  
"Ciao! I’m Italy!" Said nation introduced himself to the small trio.  
"It’s nice to meet you Italy!" Arizona said back.  
"Hey!" New Mexico pointed to Russia, "You look just like Alaska, but bigger and older." He pointed out.  
"I do? I did not see small child when she vent in meeting room." Russia responded curiously.  
"Yeah you totally do!"  
"Oh, hi Mr. Romano!" Oklahoma waves to the Italian nation he was familiar with. Romano gave a noncommittal wave back.  
"Hey, you three," The short America-clone leant down to be on-level with the ten-year-old looking states, "can you go around the house and round up the rest of the thirteen into the living room please?" He asked.  
"You can count on us!" Arizona said proudly, grabbing the two boys’ arms, "Musketeers, away!" She said, running and pulling the two boys with her down the halls and up the stairs.  
The America look alike turned to the nations,   
"Hello, I’m Delaware it’s nice to meet you all." He said politely and formally, "I’m going to help give the tour. It shouldn’t take too long, we can get to introducing you to the rest of the states soon." The nations were quite relieved that their second tour guide wasn’t as grumpy as the first.

In America’s office, Alaska sat at the monitor, watching and listening through the security cameras. She zoomed in on the Russian nation, and squinted her eyes, processing things in her head. She hummed thoughtfully.  
"Alaska, are you done yet, we’re not allowed to be here." Hawaii asked quietly, holding the side of the chair.  
"About. Give me five more minutes." Alaska responded briskly, her eyes not leaving the Russian.  
"If anyone catches us here, Dad will be mad."  
"No one will come in here, everyone’s too focused on anything else." Alaska clasped her hands together under her chin, watching the party of nations advance down the hall. The two girls heard the voices of the tour guides, and the excited ramblings of an Italian outside the door.  
"We should leave." Hawaii said a couple minutes later. Alaska gave one final glance at a still image of Russia.  
"Yeah, let’s go."

Oh this was going to be fun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me: Uses interrobang as regular grammar.  
> Everyone: What in the fresh fuck?  
> Ok, a couple things.  
> 1: ‘Daniel’ is Maryland and Delaware’s human name is Anthony.  
> 2: The nations who were there were England, France, Spain, Italy and Romano, Germany, Japan and Russia.


	5. Shady Deal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Virginia and Delaware give the nations a ‘tour’, introducing the nations to Louisiana, while Alaska runs around in the background with a plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What’s this, an early chapter? What’s this, another chapter out tomorrow? You bet!  
> Warning, as per usual, I’m not a professional at accents (clearly) so all help is appreciated.  
> Also, I don’t speak any language aside from English and some French, so help is appreciated as well, especially with the Spanish that I Google translated.  
> Lastly, self promo, you can skip this if you want. But, if you want to see my character designs, go to my Instagram (@under.cr) or my Tumblr (@under-cr)

If there’s one thing the states were known for, like all Americans generally are, it is competition. The states were always competing over anything and everything, sports, food, alcohol, land, this and that, and for the most part, it was light hearted. They found solace in competing against one another, growing their bonds through a display of their skills, and sometimes, their lack of.  
Colorado and Utah would argue over skiing, constantly insisting that they each were the best, and so they would spend time together, trying to prove to one another their superiority (Maine and Oregon occasionally joining in). There was a rivalry amongst Alabama, who liked to believe his food was naturally the best, and Louisiana, who always looked tired whenever he even suggested the idea, with Maryland in the background giving him a raised eyebrow and skeptical look (this particular rivalry often accompanied fantastic food, so the other states would often egg them on). States like Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Indiana and South Dakota, to name only some, believed themselves to be the greatest at sports, and to be the most supportive of their teams, and would go all out whenever they could.  
America encouraged this competition, because he often saw that the states would spend time together, sharing their abilities and talents, and so those months where the DC house saw the most states there would often be food battles, cornhole battles, the occasional alcohol battles for those times when the states were on very good behavior (Virginia and California enjoyed these battles a lot more than the other ones), and other competitions that brought them all together.

Now unfortunately, there were other, more serious competitions and rivalries that were less fun; that instead of building bonds, brought arguments and physical fights, or the opposite extreme: silence, blackmail and silent enmity. Most of the states were aware of the... rancor between Alaska and Texas, as Texas wasn’t too pleased to have his title as biggest state be completely overshadowed and then some by a tiny child, and Alaska wasn’t too pleased at having an incredibly tall and less intelligent man looking down on her and her abilities. They had their good moments mind you, but they were few and sparse.  
Ironically, politics were very rarely brought up in the American household. That in itself was a Pandora’s Box that would surely cause some squabble that was difficult to break up. Those fights would break out amongst two or three states and would soon grow into ten or eleven states, all at each other’s throats before America could race to the scene and do what he could to bring an end to it. Election season was the worst time for the states to get together, and so in that time America barely saw any of his kids (which was honestly really awful for him considering that was one of the times he really needed the company and respite the most).

Needless to say, the states were teeming with competitive spirit. It was an essential part of who they are and it helped them grow as people and as siblings, but was also detrimental. There was a fine line that separated the two, but with hundreds of years of practice, the states had learned to walk it with skillful finesse.

And so, America encouraged it as much as he could.

——————————

Virginia was not in the best of moods. To start, yesterday her Dad had returned from the world meeting and confirmed the rumors that the nations did in fact find out about them. Fine, whatever, she could deal with this. Next, her father had put her in charge of giving the tour to the nations, and had said something laudatory about her leadership qualities and such. Alright, annoying but Delaware was there to help so she could put up with this.  
Now, there was a jumpy Italian, the younger brother of the feisty Romano apparently, a stuck up Englishman who Virginia already didn’t like for obvious reasons, a flirty French frog (who looked like a certain Cajun) that she was on the verge of punching or kicking in the balls: whichever was more apposite, a Spaniard who seemed too overly curious and doting but otherwise fine, a creepy Russian who set her on edge, and a German and a Japanese man who... actually weren’t too bad of company. So, aside from the last two, Virginia was one flirt, insult or compliment away from snapping. Perhaps she should talk with her Dad about her duties after this.  
Delaware, on the other hand, was relishing in the foreign company. As his fathers sidekick (a more interesting word for his job than "secretary"), he often didn’t get too much time for himself. Now of course he took breaks, his father insisted on him getting some freedom now and then, but Anthony liked staying by his father’s side, even if it were detrimental to his social life and fun. But right now, answering questions about his family and house and lifestyle, receiving compliments from the nations, most notably Spain and France, and becoming familiar with the nations themselves, he couldn’t help but plan in his head his next vacation all across Europe (visiting Japan while he was out and about).

"And here is the kitchen and dining room, probably the most important room in the house." Delaware motioned as he led the gaping nations into the massive room, it was truly a marvel. He couldn’t help but grin proudly at their amazed expressions, he really was enjoying this.  
"It is also the room where the most dissension occurs." Virginia said caustically with a hand on her hip, turning to look venomously at Louisiana, who was cooking lunch quite peacefully, the meal still quite early into its preparation so it was difficult to discern what exactly was being made. When Louisiana went to return said states glare, Virginia turned and pretended not to notice her. When the Cajun noticed the company, she immediately stopped her cooking, and straightened up her dress, silently very thankful she had no stains on it yet. Giving her hair a flick, she approached the nations.

"Ah, bonjou, it’s nice to meet y’all. I’m Louisiana, but y’all can call me Louise." She said, extending her hand to shake those of the nations politely. Upon hearing the familiar name, France rushed forward grabbing the hand and kissing it.  
"Louisiana, mon ancienne colonie! Enchanté." He said, not releasing the hand.  
"Quel plaisir de faire votre connaissance Monsieur France, j’assume." Louise straightened and pulled her hand back with enough force to communicate slight discomfort.  
"Oui, je suis la France. Vous ressemblez à moi, je vois l’influence de moi est forte." France said with a wink.  
"Oui... je suppose." Louise said with a forced smile. Looks like it was time to make another voodoo doll.  
"Louisiana, I believe I had some influence there." The Spaniard said politely.  
"Si. Creo que lo hiciste." Louise replied, much more enthusiastically. France gave a pout at this favored attention.

"Alright, enough with the pelican, we have a tour to get over and done with. Those three troublemakers are gathering the thirteen as we speak and it’ll be a miracle if they’re still there when we get there, they don’t like to stay in one place you know." Virginia gave her mini lecture.  
"Aw, Ginny. Ya reckon if maybe after y’all are done talking together, if ya could send Maryland ma way so he could help with some a tha cookin’? With the company we might wanna make some extra food." Louisiana asked, walking back to the bench where the ingredients lay.  
"Oh yeah, of course. Let Maryland help you but not me. No, never me." Virginia mumbled under her breath, catching the attention of the Briton.  
"Thanks darlin’," Louisiana returned to her cooking as the tour continued to the right and out the back to the backyard.

——————————

"You want me to what?" Nevada asked, incredibly surprised, leaning back in his seat.  
"I want you to go to the hotel and create a reason for the nations to not be able to stay there." Alaska stated in a dumbed-down baby voice, as if speaking to an idiot. It was a very simple request, there wasn’t much explaining to be done. She had borrowed (stolen) her father’s phone and gone through some texts and emails to discover which hotels which nations had been booked to stay at. All the nations in the DC house (plus China and Mexico) were staying at a single hotel, which made her plan a lot simpler.  
"Right. I heard you, I just don’t think you can leave it at that." Nevada fiddled with his gloves, he felt very intimidated by the child in her current state, "and why choose me to be your lackey?"  
"Simple, you’re a living manipulator and if anyone can convince them to kick out very important, high-standing people, it would be you." Nevada winced at being called a manipulator. He would never think of himself as such, he simply like flirting and attracting people to his state with his good looks and incredible charisma, showing them his flashy casino, before consensually robbing them of every penny they once owned and kicking them out onto the street. Hey, it was nicknamed Sin City for a reason you know!  
He thought over the request a minute, "And what is in it for me?"  
Alaska sighed, of course it wouldn’t be that easy, "I’ll keep Dad and Virginia and all the others off your shit so you can do whatever you want with the nations. Got to be some rich ones." Nevada lit up at the offer, now that was a deal he could make.  
"I suppose I could work some magic for you Nikita, but I expect you to hold up your end of the deal or else I’ll clue Dad into the fact that you’re up to some shady fuckery." He said, adjusting his suit and standing.  
"Don’t you worry about my end of the deal right now, worry about your own." Alaska said matter-of-factly.  
"Good luck Noah!" Hawaii encouraged giving a small wave from beside Alaska. Nevada gave a wave back. He was fond of Hawaii, the girl was innocent but knew how to attract the rich and the famous, and he could appreciate that.

How would things play out though?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Louisiana: gets attention  
> Virginia, who’s pissed ‘cause she didn’t get to cook: bitch.
> 
> *Here’s the non English for y’all cause I’m nice*  
> "Louisiana, mon ancienne colonie! Enchanté." - Louisiana, my former colony! It’s nice to meet you.  
> "Quel plaisir de faire votre connaissance Monsieur France, j’assume." - What a pleasure to meet you Mr. France, I assume.  
> "Oui, je suis la France. Vous ressemblez à moi, je vois l’influence de moi est forte." - Yes, I am France. You look like me, I see the influence of me is strong.  
> "Oui... je suppose." - Yes... i suppose.  
> "Si. Creo que lo hiciste." - Yes. I think/believe you did.
> 
> I’m not sure what you guys were expecting with the tour, but I’m not going to detail the house, that’s not the point of the story. And yes, this is the ‘tour’ chapter.


	6. Introductions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The nations are introduced to the thirteen colonies, and surprisingly no one gets hurt!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hhhhhiii again guys. Hope y’all are doing good. These notes are gonna be the usual, feel free to ignore them!
> 
> Just a heads up, I am far from professional with accents so any help is appreciated!  
> Also with languages, I only speak English and a bit of French, so for the non English I’m heavily dependent up Google Translate, so if you know anymore than I do, feel free to correct me.
> 
> Also, if you want to see the states’ designs, go check them out on my Instagram (@under.cr) or my Tumblr (@under-cr)
> 
> Now, allons y!

As personifications, both America and the states had important responsibilities, such as aiding in running the country. Each state, depending on their personality and their physical/mental age, had different governmental duties they were required to do both at DC and in their state as well. So while it may not seem it, the states did work despite looking like (and sometimes acting like) children. However, the states, like the nations, had human sides to them. They had their own human identities, their own human names they chose for themselves (with their father’s approval of course), hobbies, friends, and some of them even had jobs on top of the government ones they had been assigned at birth. And because of this, there sprouted the need to balance the two lives, and because America insisted his children have freedom (for the most part), the states would only spend about half of their time in their actual state, and half at the DC house.  
Alfred insisted that his kids be at the house during July (for obvious reasons), November for Thanks Giving, and December for Christmas and for New Year’s. Those were the three months where the house was packed full of people and was very noisy, but also emanated an energetic atmosphere and felt rejuvenating, if you could get over the crashing and shouting. The states liked to stay longer though, some coming earlier in June or staying later in August, arriving in October to help with Halloween or staying through January, riding out the majority of the Winter with their dad. So it’s safe to say, that there always seemed to be some state or another present at the house at all times.

America also did not live full time at the DC house. He would travel to different states when he could escape his quote on quote job. He migrated from the DC house down to his house in Virginia during the spring, and he would spend a state’s birthday in said state with them, sometimes traveling across multiple in one day for multiple birthdays, like Oregon and Arizona, who shared a birthday on Valentine’s Day. America would take a hike with Oregon and then visit he Grand Canyon with Arizona in the same day. Or on May 29th, when America would spend the day with Rhode Island and then with Wisconsin. Or June 1st with Kentucky and Tennessee, the states being right next to each other and close socially made his life much easier. And on those occasions where a world meeting would fall on the day of a state’s birthday, America would bring that state with him to whatever nation was hosting; a little hypocritical with the whole ‘don’t get found out’ motif, but America wasn’t super keen to miss a state’s birthday and an overseas adventure was a pretty splendid gift as well.

Needless to say, not America nor his kids were known to stay in one place for very long, and whether that was a trait the states inherited from America, or a trait America picked up from his kids is unknown. But, in reality that doesn’t matter.

As long as they spent time together.

——————————

"Vhy do vu efen have zuch a large flover garden?" Germany asked, as the tour returned back indoors.   
"Well, it started with Wisconsin wanting to plant some violets, and then Arkansas wanted to plant some Apple Bottoms and soon every state wanted to contribute with their flowers." Delaware told the nations the story. The backyard flower garden was quite enormous, and to think it had only started out with a single flower bed.  
"And we certainly have the ability to maintain and water the flowers, so there’s no reason for it to not be so big." Virginia added, she herself was quite proud of her dogwoods.  
"Who planted sunflowers?" Russia asked.  
"Oh that was Alaska, she planted them next to her forget-me-nots. She’s very defensive of her flowers, so I wouldn’t go near them, I know you like sunflowers." Delaware warned, pointing at Russia. He wondered for a minute how Delaware knew he had a fondness for the flowers. His question hasn’t been that telling, had it?

"Anyway, that wraps up the tour, and unless you guys want to go to the basement, which I," Virginia emphasized, "would not recommend." Giving a death stare to the nations, they realized she was serious.  
"Alright, you guys wanna go meet the rest of the thirteen, they’re probably ready now. Hopefully," Delaware asked the nations, not that they had much of a choice though. After seeing some nods, he turned excitedly, "Alright let’s go!" Virginia just groaned.

——————————

In the living room, sprawled out on the leftmost couch and the floor surrounding it sat eleven states, chatting to each other with a mixture of emotions. New Jersey was talking to New York (the latter state had decided to change into something a little nicer given the company of the foreign visitors), and Pennsylvania was sitting on the floor trying to include herself in their conversation. Georgia and South Carolina were chatting with one another, occasionally with North Carolina who just seemed bored. Massachusetts was huddled at the floor to the right of the couch, obviously in a bad mood. New Hampshire, who was beside him (who had given up attempting to cheering him up) was happily conversing with Connecticut and Rhode Island who were on the couch, Maryland uncomfortably squished between them. Delaware took a second to appreciate the scene (it was nice how they left the other two couches empty for the nations).  
"Hey guys," he said, making his presence known, "Comfortable there?" He asked Maryland. Maryland nodded with a displeased expression.  
"Completely," he squirmed a bit in an effort to free up some space for himself, "Never felt more comfortable in my life."  
"What’s up guys. How was the tour?" Jersey asked as the tour leaders motioned for the nations to sit on the free couches.  
"Oh, it was a tour all right." Virginia stated, exasperated. New York laughed a little at her frustration; he was met with a murderous stare.  
"Anyway," Delaware flopped down onto the floor beside Pennsylvania, "How about we get to introductions, so you all can be free?"  
"Freedom!" Georgia exclaimed, pumping her fist into the air before laughing. The other states laughed as well.

"You guys should go first I think." Pennsylvania suggested to the nations, the states making various gestures of agreement.  
"Ve~ I’ll go first!" Italy bounced, "Ciao! I’m Italy! It’s nice to meet you, small-Americas!" Some of the states giggled at his excitement.  
"It’s nice to meet ya too," Georgia said, "Italians are a treasure in this house."  
"Great food, but dat applies tuh most European countries," New York added.  
"Grazie!" The excited nation said.   
The states looked to Romano next, who just seemed annoyed.  
"Do I really need to introduce myself to you loud, burger bastards‽ You already know me." he said, crossing his arms.  
"Do it for fun," Maryland shrugged.  
"You don’t have to." New Jersey stated with a smile.  
"Oh right, you knew about them." England huffed, remembering the unintentionally-insulting piece of information. Massachusetts tensed upon hearing the British accent. Maybe the state wasn’t quite as over past events as he thought he was.

"I am Germany. It is nice to meet vu all." Germany said politely.  
Pennsylvania sat up straighter, "You’re Prussia’s brother, yeah?" She asked. Germany was surprised at the mention of his brother, but said yes nonetheless. "Tell him I said hi would you? He probably doesn’t remember me, but I remember him!" She said with a blindingly bright smile like that of America’s.  
"He knew too‽" England exclaimed. Massachusetts twitched, and New Hampshire grabbed his wrist in a silent way of trying to calm him down. England noticed this, and his eyes fell upon the sulking boy. He had green eyes and eyebrows exactly like his own, not to mention his face shape was very similar. Massachusetts caught his stare and looked away uncomfortably.  
"He did, but he probably doesn’t remember, or he wouldn’t recognize us, one of the two. We were like, five year olds or something like that when he saw us." Pennsylvania said with a shrug. England was shaken by this, even though he said nothing verbally.

"Konnichiwa, it is nice to meet you," Japan said with a bow of the head, "I am Japan."  
"Pleasure to meet you Japan!" Pennsylvania responded.  
"Привет Americans, I am Russia," the cold nation said with a creepy smile. New York squinted his eyes suspiciously.  
"De ‘Become One’ guy?" He asked. Russia was taken aback.  
"да, that is me," before he could say anything else, Massachusetts cut in.  
"Don’t think you can try that shit here, Dad’ll kill you."  
New Hampshire wacked his arm, "Don’t be so fucking rude. You guys can keep going."

"Hola, yo soy España," Spain greeted with a smile.   
"Ah, the tomato bastard. We’ve heard about you," Pennsylvania jeered, receiving a snort from Romano.  
"Aw Roma! You talked about me!" Spain said happily.  
"I did nothing you bastard!" Romano said, his face red and abashed.  
"He talked about you," Delaware stated smugly, "a lot."

"Ohonhonhon, ‘ow sweet." France commented.  
"Ah, so yuh’re de French one. Why am I not surprised?" New York said sarcastically.  
"He looks like Louise." New Jersey stated matter-of-factly.  
"I don’t see the resemblance." Pennsylvania stage-whispered to Jersey, looking France up and down.  
"You’re just thrown off cause the skin color’s different." Jersey whispered back. Pennsylvania made a little ‘ah’ sound in response.  
"Oui, I am France. It is nice to meet you all." He said with a wink.  
"How very French." Maryland giggled.

"Yes. Well, I am England, it’s nice to meet y—" his sentence was interrupted by a knife flying passed his head. The room instantly grew tense and silent, and all eyes turned to Massachusetts, who was now standing, staring daggers at the gentleman’s way.  
"God fucking damn it Mass." North Carolina sighed, done with everything and everyone.  
"Can you not even wait until after the introductions? Maybe? Like save the murder for later." South Carolina added, sounding a little more pissed than her Northern sister.  
"But...? It’s.. England!" Massachusetts said, angrily gesturing at said nation.  
"And pops said don’t kill him." New York said. Massachusetts sighed exasperatedly.  
"Mass, we all wanna kill him, but we can’t. So sit your ass down and let him speak." Georgia said shoving him back a bit.  
Massachusetts sat back down in his spot, New Hampshire giving him another wack in the arm, this time with more force. The angry state gave a furious glare to England, and dragged his hand across the neck as people do to symbolize death. England gulped.  
"Uh.. It’s nice to meet you all." He restated, this time without the knife.  
"It’s ah... nice to meet you too." Pennsylvania said, unsure of how to break through the tense atmosphere.  
"Are your eyebrows natural because both Ginny and Ben have them and I know theirs are natural but like... are yours?" New Hampshire asked, the tension immediately faded.  
"Dude, you can’t just ask about his eyebrows." Rhode Island said hitting New Hampshire gently over the head.  
"Why not?"  
"Because it’s not exactly a normal question to ask a person‽"  
"It’s a conversation starter." New Hampshire said with a smug visage.  
"That’s a shit conversation starter." Rhode Island said, smiling despite himself.  
"We are conversing, are we not?"

"Well, how about we introduce ourselves now?" Georgia suggested, tired of listening to the boys talk.  
"Sure, sounds good to me." Pennsylvania agreed.  
"So we’re just going to ignore my question." New Hampshire asked, sounding very offended.  
"Yes."

"Okay, so you already know me, but I can reintroduce myself," Delaware sat up to look more professional, and adjusted his glasses that had fallen askew, "My name is Delaware, you can call me Anthony if you want. I am, unfortunately, the oldest of all the states, although it means I am the only state that has ever known peace and quiet," Delaware rolled his eyes and the nations laughed, "I work as Dad’s sidekick– er um.. secretary."  
"Ve~ so you are a mini America!" Italy chimed in, very pleased.  
"Yes, I suppose so." Anthony smiled, also very pleased.  
"Yeah, yeah, enough about him. I~ am the awesome Pennsylvania! Second oldest, and I would have known peace and quiet if that blue hen hadn’t existed!" Pennsylvania looked a lot less like America, and more like Prussia. She had a similar face shape and eyes (the same color as Prussia’s) and her personality and looks seemed to be heavily influenced by said nation, although her hair was a very light blonde color instead of white. She also gave off an air of confidence and threat (that she was aware and very proud of).  
"And I’m New Jersey!" The state said, giving Pennsylvania a kick in the head. "I’m the third oldest state, I own the Statue of Liberty’s gift shop, fuck you York." Said state gave her the middle finger, "and we’re the best drivers, I dont care what you think." Jersey, unlike her two older siblings, had short, chestnut hair, and had gold eyes.  
"With that flatterin’ introduction out the way. I’m Georgia, nice to meet y’all. I’m the fourth state of the union, most southern of the thirteen. Just less than half my state is rural and farmin’, and I’m known for my peaches." Georgia has America’s blue eyes, but slightly tanner and darker hair. She looked very much like a country girl that lived in the city, which made for an interesting character.  
"I’m next. Hi, I’m Connecticut, I’ve been weirdly silent the last while," More laughter was heard, "You can call me Ryan if you want to. I’m the fifth of the states, and I’m nicknamed the Nutmeg State, but I’d rather you didn’t call me that. My state looks wonderful during the Fall if you want to come visit." Connecticut had bright red hair and blue eyes like that of America’s. He was short, but still a couple inches taller than Delaware.  
There was a silence, and then New Hampshire elbowed Massachusetts.  
"Oh, yeah. I’m Massachusetts, fifth state. I have great colleges and great food. Call me Ben if you want but I don’t give a fuck." He said, side glancing the nations.  
"He’s normally not this much of a bitch, he’s actually quite fun. He’s just in a bad mood right now." New Jersey informed the nations.  
"That is.. reassuring." England said, still a little on edge from the previous incident. Massachusetts shot him another look. Massachusetts, as said before, looked very much like England, except that he had less of a taste of manners in the presence of guests and he had a cowlick like that of America.  
"Ah... so. I’m Maryland, the Old Line State, you can call me Daniel if you want. I’m known for my food, especially my seafood." Maryland had blond wavy hair and had heterochromia of the eye, one being green and the other being a rich blue.  
"Oh Dan, that reminds me. Louisiana asked me, well Virginia but I was there, if you could help her out in the kitchen." Delaware said, upon remembering earlier conversations.  
"Oh yeah, should I do that now?" He asked, unsure whether it was right to leave in the middle of the states’ introductions.   
"Yeah, why not." And with that, Maryland squeezed out of the tight space he was in on the couch and said his quick goodbyes to the nations.  
"Alright then, South, you’re up."  
"Cool, well hi! I’m South Carolina, call me Skylar if it suits your fancy. I’m the seventh state. I am also good at cooking, so I could’ve gone and helped out. My state has voted republican for forty years in a row, I don’t know why I said that; I’m sorry for making this political." The states laughed. South Carolina had similar hair and skin color to Georgia, her hair being held out of her eyes by a star shaped hair clip. She had America’s eyes as well.  
"Alright, finally! My turn. I’m New Hampshire! Human name’s Jacob, don’t wear it out. I’m the eighth state, and the greatest," Pennsylvania scoffed, "My state is cold, but I deal with it well. It’s a mining state, we mine mainly gravel, sand and then some gems and stuff." New Hampshire had light blond hair, lighter than America’s which he could only bother slicking back half, and he had America’s eyes.  
"Right, that makes me next. You already know me, I’m Virginia, tenth state added to this mess of a house. I’m not actually the oldest even though I was the ‘first’ colony unfortunately. I could have used that sanity." She had the eyes and eyebrows of the Brit, and the same color hair, but much longer and tied into pigtails.  
"If she gets pissy with you just give her some alcohol." Pennsylvania stage whispered to the nations. Virginia gave her a side glance but said nothing about the matter.  
"Alright, I’m New York or Jayden. I’m de eleventh state, was de most populated state until California stole dat title. I own de Statue of Liberty, fuck yuh Jersey," said state gave him the middle finger, "I got great food, great style, great everything." New York had black hair that covered his left eye (for a reason), with turquoise-colored eyes and indeed, had great style... most of the time.   
"Hey there, I’m North Carolina, or Ava if you want to call me that. I’m the twelfth state. My state’s got great college basketball, and it was first in flight." North Carolina looked very physically similar to South Carolina, except she had lighter skin, short hair and wore a little ribbon to add an element of cute on top of the feisty.   
"Fucking finally," Rhode Island said, sitting up straight, "I’m Rhode Island, thirteenth of the thirteen colonies, last to introductions," the states laughed, "My human name is Alex, no one really uses it though. Yes, I’m the smallest state, and yes I am very short. Thank you for noticing. My states pretty great at everything if I do say so myself." Massachusetts laughed at the notion. Rhode Island had long brown hair, slightly lighter than New Jersey’s, that he wore in a pony tail. And it was true, he was very short.

"Well that’s all of us." Delaware said, stretching.  
"Ve~ it’s nice to meet all of you! You’re all so fun!" Italy chimed.  
"Heh, I like dis guy." New York said with a smile.

"Hey guys," America said, at the doorway to the living room.  
"Dad!" About half the states exclaimed in unison.  
"How’s everything going little dudes?" The father of the thirteen asked, seemingly uncomfortable about having to share something with either the nations or the states, but willing to beat around the bush before doing so.  
"Great except that Mass nearly murdered England." Connecticut stated, said state blushes at his failure to listen to his dad being brought to light before the man.  
"Yeah, well it’s a good thing he’s leaving soon." Massachusetts said, annoyed and embarrassed. America took a deep breath.

"Yeah... about that..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Thirteen: We love Italians!  
> Romano: Fuck you, I hate you all.
> 
> Fuck can you tell I died by the end of this? I’m exhausted right now.   
> Also, what’s in the basement you might ask? Well it’s the Magic lair (angst chamber) and Virginia’s main hang out where she does witchy stuff (and hides her wine.)


	7. Suspicious Happenings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Word gets around the house that the nations are going to have to stay longer than originally planned, and there are a lot of different reactions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Same old same old  
> I suck at accents and with language so if I get something wrong, feel free to correct me.  
> If you want to see my designs for all the states, go to my Instagram (@unde.cr) or my tumblr (@unde-cr)
> 
> Anyways enjoy.

If there was one area where America’s parenting skills lacked ability, it would be with punishments and admonishing actions. Don’t get me wrong, he could punish his children; he had the capability to be the greater man in those situations, but perhaps because of his history, or because he was young at heart, it was just something he loathed doing. His kids were reasonable... most of the time, and they followed the rules he set for them... most of the time. However, I’m sure it’s fairly well known that America has a propensity for freedom and such beliefs and behaviors seem to bleed into his parenting. And because of this, the states had become familiar with certain circumventions they could commit.  
Because the states only stayed at the DC house for approximately half of the year, they were largely unsupervised, which was something they had become accustomed to. America set rules for them naturally, rules such as, "Don’t get arrested" or "Don’t spend all of your bill money on alcohol" and the states abided by these rules, but others they quietly ignored and pretended that their deeds were discrete.

A good example of this is Nevada and his casino. Now, being the fair man America is, gambling and chicanery weren’t his style of money-making, and that distaste of such practices had thankfully been passed down to most of his children, however Nevada was a bit different. He ran a casino in the heart of Sin City, and he had quite the ability to captivate a lot of poor folks who would find their way inside. Alfred was obviously not pleased with this, but Nevada was clever, and he used his intelligence and free time to find loopholes in whatever rules his father set for him, until eventually he just gave up and let the boy roam free.  
Another example is how America had often caught Michigan border-hopping over into... Canadia? Is that was he’s called? Anyway, America didn’t have too much of an issue with his kids wanting to visit his brother, but he did like to know the general whereabouts of his kids, if that made sense. He didn’t want to track them or keep tabs on them at all times, but he wanted to make sure they were at least in the general vicinity he believed them to be in, AKA their state. Michigan, however, enjoyed crossing over into the maple nation whenever he pleased, and would often do so even when he knew his father was coming to visit.  
One last fine example are the personifications of Alabama and Mississippi in their entirety. The two states were very close, personality and proximity wise, and so when one acted out the other was likely to follow. It’s hard to list a particular rule they often disobey however, because they liked to live life with as much freedom as possible, meaning they never really listened to or followed any rules whenever their father wasn’t present.

Needless to say, the states knew when and how to step over certain rules and restrictions, as most kids do. America wasn’t oblivious to this though, he knew just as well as his kids did that the limitations the states lived by weren’t really the ones he set, but were rather the mental limitations and morals that had been set in their minds from a young age.

But he was the same, so what else is there to say?

——————————

"What do you mean the hotel’s shut‽ Hotels don’t do that!" America yelled in confusion. This wasn’t helping his foul mood in this slightest. Inviting the nations to the DC house had been exhausting enough on its own, and the talks he had had with some of the states had been nothing but emotionally draining, and with the nations in the house he had to be constantly prepared to settle whatever conflicts arose. And now, of course, on today of all days, the hotel the nations were staying at closed. Closed‽  
"I’m aware, hence I’m suspicious of it." Indiana responded. She had been the one to answer the office phone and receive the news, and also the one who had broken the inconvenient news to her father. Ohio was with her, the two states now sitting on the couch opposite America in his office.   
"Why?" America asked, leaning back covering his face with his hands.  
"Why are they ‘’closed’’ or why am I suspicious?" The Hoosier asked.  
"Both."  
Indiana sat up, she held up one finger to indicate her first reason,"Well, for starters as you said, hotels don’t close really, and when I asked them why all they said was ‘repairs’," she extended a second finger, "Secondly, this happens to be the hotel you recommended the nations, who happen to be at our house right now, stay at, so that can hardly be coincidence," she extended a third finger, "Third, they rung me— or well you— and not the nations, which is weird because the hotel shouldn’t have your number, since you didn’t book the rooms." She put her hand down.  
"Wait, the nations don’t know?" America sat up, the idea of having to break this news to the nations, and the panic associated with such an idea flooded his being. This was the last thing he needed. God please don’t let it be true.  
"There’d be a lot more yelling if they knew I think," Ohio very helpfully supplied.

America deflated, "Can we find them somewhere else to stay?" He asked, pointlessly hoping that it would be that simple.  
"We could, but if someone is trying to keep the nations out of the hotel, it probably isn't smart to try and shove ‘em into a different one. That one might ‘close’ as well." Indiana averred.  
"We have guest rooms, they can stay here." Ohio once again, very helpfully supplied.  
America thought over his options. He could let the nations stay at the house, but that would be in itself one of the most exhausting experiences of his life, and the nations would face the judgement of the states, some who have anger-backed grudges, putting their safety (and his sanity) at risk, or he could find them a different hotel, running the risk that whoever has it out for the nations finds the new hotel and shuts it down again, planting them in the midst of unfortunate circumstances, thus putting their safety (and his sanity) at risk also.  
He sighed, heavily.  
"I guess we’re doing this."

——————————

"And where have you been?" Montana asked Nevada as he stepped through the front door as quietly as he could; his lengths to obviate the accumulation of suspicion failing the second Montana saw him.  
"I was... out for a walk. Chaotic in the house today, yeah?" His voice was miraculously free of any tones or wavers that would indicate pretense.  
"Uh-huh, like I would believe that." Montana wasn’t fooled easily, and given Nevada’s wonts, she couldn’t help but be suspicious, especially now with the shit hitting the fan.  
"He was running some errands for me." The two interlocutors turned to see Alaska, hands behind her back and serious in demeanor, with the innocent Hawaii trailing behind her, smile as wide as ever. "And unless you want to end up buried twenty feet underground, you better turn the other way."  
"Y’know, this isn’t mitigating my suspicions right? It’s doing the opposite." Montana wasn’t the least bit threatened, but she didn’t exactly appreciate being in the midst of drama and there was a tension surrounding her being that she didn’t plan on fueling.  
"‘S not supposed to. You’re not an idiot like half the dolts in this house. But you know when to step down." The kid was right, she did.  
Montana gave her one final suspicious glance, then looked at Nevada, "Words gettin’ around the house. The nations are going to be staying here probably," she began to walk out the room but stopped at the doorway. Not even looking at the two, she continued, "But something tells me you already knew that."

Once Alaska was sure Montana was beyond the overhearing distance, she walked up to Nevada.  
"Good job, I’ll be here to provide whatever you need of me to maintain my end of the arrangement."  
"So... are you going to tell me why you’re doing all this?" Nevada asked, his conspiracist side roused.  
Alaska scoffed, "Of course not, you’re nothing but a stooge." She took Hawaii by the hand, "Text me when you need my help."

Nevada couldn’t help but be very curious. He knew it was best to let the matter go, to move on with his life and deny in the near future any culpability, but that tiny voice in his mind tugged furiously at him.  
It wasn’t a side of him he made obvious to many people, he had an image as a successful, suave mountebank to sustain, but it certainly was a side of him. And maybe it was because of that little place near Groom Lake, but he was a massive theory and conspiracy partisan. And now, himself being associated with one, even if it was simply familial, was nothing short of exhilarating. He was a part of this now, and he was going to find out what ‘this’ was.

——————————

"What do you mean we have to stay here‽" England cried out.  
America just sighed, looking twenty times more done with everything the more everything piled up, "Look, someone clearly has it out for you, and if you don’t wanna get maimed or something then you should stay here."  
Massachusetts face was overtaken with horror. Putting up with these– Europeans these colonizers for a day was already wearing his patience thin, but the news of having to put up with them for longer had snapped it like a twig.  
"They are not staying here. No." He affirmed.  
"Hey, Ben. Can you head to my office please? We need to have a little chat bud." America smiled. It wasn’t a sincere smile, but he did his best to make it appear as one because he knew his son needed support, not reprimanding at the moment. Massachusetts gifted England with a final death glare before he left the room.  
"Vat is zhe meaning of zhis America?" Germany asked, he too running short on patience at the American’s incompetency.  
"Calm down dudes! It’s no big deal, just some stuff going on that I’m gonna get sorted out. You can count on me!" The nation flashed the room his hero smile, and it gave some solace to the states, the nations not as much.  
"They the only ones at that hotel?" Pennsylvania asked.  
"Are we taking nations or people? Cause China was there as well and I think Mexico?" America thought out loud.  
"Can we not bring Mexico here? I can’t even imagine the dramas," North Carolina cringed, "Well actually I can but I’m choosing not to for the sake of my sanity."  
"I think Mexico will be fine." America knew leaving his... brother... out there could be potentially dangerous given the uncertain circumstances, but North Carolina had a point. With the amount of drama already elicited with the nations currently at the house, plus the dramas of the past, America could only imagine the headache he would have if they threw Mexico in the pot. Plus, Mexico would probably be fine, the man had a certain spunk that naturally warded off people (he would know, especially after 1848).  
"I can go and get China if you want." Pennsylvania suggested. She really needed an excuse to get out of this house right now, the visit from the nations being a tad bit overwhelming, not that she’d ever admit it though. She’s too awesome for that.  
"That would be really helpful."  
And with that, the girl was sprinting out the door.  
"We have enough spare rooms for all of you, and you don’t even have to share. They’re right out that door, oh did you show them on the tour?" America asked, Delaware nodded, "Ok so you know where they are. Don’t go upstairs unless you’re invited ok!"  
"Do we not get a say? ¿Qué hay de todas nuestras cosas?" Spain asked.  
"Y’all wanted to be here, the universe’s providing. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a grumpy teenager in my office who needs some consolation. See ya dudes!" America said flashing the peace sign, leaving the room in the process.  
"Welp, now that that’s all over," Georgia stood and stretched, "Foosball competition in the Game Room!" She cried, running out as fast as she could.   
"Fuck yeah! You’re on!" New Hampshire beamed; him, New Jersey, South Carolina, Rhode Island and Connecticut following her. North Carolina sighed, but followed soon after.  
Virginia stood, giving her skirt a little swipe to straighten it out. "I know this isn’t what you guys thought would happen, but you’ll learn not to trust your expectations in this house quite quick." She smiled at her own statement, leaning back on the couch armrest for a second. "Where are you heading?" She asked her older brother who was still in the room.  
"Probably upstairs," Delaware said standing, "seems like downstairs is going to get crazy real quick." He turned to the nations, "I would suggest that if you guys want lunch without all the chaos that you head to the kitchen now. I’m sure Louise and Dan have something already prepped for you guys."  
"I don’t know if I’m excited for des aliments américains." France stated, a little worried.  
"Oh don’t worry. Louise is head chef and she definitely picked up your ability to cook."  
"Or mine." Spain chimed in.  
"Yeah, maybe." Delaware shrugged, making his way to the doorway, Virginia in tow.  
"And what are you doing?" Japan asked New York, the last state remaining in the room.  
"Eh, I’m gonna see what’s on TV" the boy said, snuggling into the couch.

——————————

This was not what Pennsylvania had signed up for. Now, she hadn’t exactly known what is was she was signing up for and she hadn’t stuck around to ask, but it definitely wasn’t this. Had she known that the Chinese man was this dismissive and carping with Western nations, she may have ran the long way here. She had chosen not to drive, opting to instead go on a run to the hotel, after all she was an advocate for exercise and as a military general, it was best she stay fit and healthy, but looking back driving would’ve been the best way to assure this experience lasted as short as possible. Well, that’s hindsight for you.  
He was subjectively unawesome, and had began complaining about the pathetic inabilities to properly run something as simple as a hotel, and had gradually shifted the topic of berating towards her dad. Perhaps she shouldn’t sell him out so quickly, he was the victim of whatever the fuck was going in with the hotel people, and he did have an acquisitive nature that she could appreciate, but God could he please just stop even for a second.  
"Stupid American, can’t pay me back. Should never trust a western nation, aru~."  
"Dude, can you like shut up for a minute," Pennsylvania said unintentionally, running the statement through her head before realizing how abrasive it came out, "I mean, Dad didn’t even want nations at the house, and now he’s letting you stay because of events that he couldn’t control. Seems kind of awesome to me, you should be thankful." She corrected herself, hoping she had achieved something.  
China gave her a skeptical look which altered a bit, and for a second Penny thought she had actually gotten through to him, but it didn’t last long.  
"I’ll be happy when he pays me back aru~." Pennsylvania just sighed. The DC house returning to her line of sight felt like a gift.

——————————

"Ain’t yuh gonna go tuh de kitchen wit' de rest of dem?" New York looked inquisitively at the remaining Frenchman who’s visage was primed with that classic French essence.  
"Honhonhon, I couldn’t ‘elp but notice you mentioned la Dame Liberté. You know she was a gift from moi, oui?" He said.  
"Of cawhse I know, she’s de pride of my state. Had quite de tussle wit' Jersey, but like hell I was lettin' huh go." New York vaunted. He found a lot of pride in the statue, it’s status as a national treasure boosted his self-confidence substantially. A lot of New Yorkers who lived outside of New York City held an air of aversion to those who lived in the city, and it was a weird contrast that confused him quite a bit. He could only imagine how his father felt, the American people being all over the place with their opinions of the nation.  
"Honhonhon, I’m glad you like ‘er. Tel de belle femme est parfait for you." France gave New York a wink, before he found himself out of the room to join the rest for lunch.  
New York just stared at the doorway where the Frenchman had left. He felt his face go red, and his heart beat a little faster. The words played over and over in his mind for a couple of minutes before he finally decided to turn the tv on to settle his thoughts.

Perhaps the nations weren’t all bad after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> America: Hotels dont close!  
> Corona Virus: That’s where your wrong
> 
> I know this chapter seemed really choppy, but I needed a transition chapter so I can focus on different aspects of the story.  
> Also, I have been so excited to write about York’s crush on France. I’m not going to have anything pursued, it’s more like a celebrity crush, but it’ll still be fun as fuck to write.
> 
> *Heres the language things, remember I don’t speak any languages but English et un peu de français, so if it’s wrong, please tell me*
> 
> • ¿Qué hay de todas nuestras cosas? - What about our things?  
> • des aliments américains - America food  
> • la Dame Liberté - Lady Liberty (I feel that one’s self-explanatory)  
> • Tel de belle femme est parfait - Such a beautiful woman is perfect


	8. Breaking Down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Massachusetts doesn’t want to deal with his trauma, but sometimes letting go is the best thing you can do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So because online school is a thing I have to do now, my schedule for writing will be a bit different. I know, it’s hard to believe but I did have a schedule, I just didn’t stick to it.  
> Anyway, I plan on hopefully posting every Wednesday and Sunday. I’m hoping to post twice a week because I have another serious story I want to write, but I don’t want to do it until this one is done.
> 
> Ok, so here’s the normal stuff,  
> I’m trash at accents and language, so do tell me if it’s wrong.  
> Also if you want to see the character designs, go to my Instagram (@unde.cr) or my Tumblr (@unde-cr)
> 
> Hey we’re dealing with trauma today, more specifically, Massachusetts’ trauma! Aren’t you guys excited for some good ol’ relatable feels?

Being un-aging personifications of landmasses/the populations of those landmasses made it difficult for the states to have regular childhoods. America tried as their father to give them whatever scraps of normality he was able to, letting them play and possess childlike innocence, but sooner or later the states would wake up and realize that the lives they were destined to lead were anything but normal. When America was a neophyte parent, when the states were first personified and America took in the tiny children and did his best to raise them, he knew that they would grow up too fast, especially as personifications.  
As the thirteen colonies began to grow, and the revolution began knocking at the door, men of different nations from across the seas arriving to fight, America would look at his kids and realize how unsafe the world was for them. The revolution was necessary and America would never deny the importance it had for him and his people, but the nightmares it caused (both literally and metaphorically) were inconceivable prior to their happenings. The states had impetrated for their father to condone their assistance in the war, but he told them time and time again that they needed to stay out of it. All he wanted was for them to live the lives of regular children, and to hold on to that naivety as long as they could.

When the Siege of Boston finally came to an end, America finally came to terms with the fact that his children, his states, weren’t designed to live regular lives. And even though it hurt him, he finally let them join him in the fight. Pennsylvania had been bouncing off of the walls, pouncing at any opportunity to aid in the fight, training with Prussia, learning military and battle techniques, memorizing the terrain and her enemies’ routines. Her meteoric transformation into a revolutionary had been a shock to Alfred’s system. New York and Delaware had also trained and become fierce warriors, the Southern girls following suit. And as for Massachusetts, well, after the Siege of Boston the kid had never been the same.  
It was frightening to Alfred, especially on the parental side. This small, happy boy with a peppy attitude and constant smile had mutated into this retributive, serious fighter. And sure, slowly, decade by decade bits and pieces of the old Massachusetts had surfaced once more, but there was always that underlying trauma.

Needless to say, the past was as much of a factor in the states’ lives as the present, and though the states had all metamorphosed rapidly throughout their entire lives, memories and experiences from the past could never be shaken off with ease.

But maybe, they could move on. 

——————————

The ground had become exceedingly more interesting the longer this conversation between him and his father had progressed. His hands, the fabric of the couch and the far-left wall had also become sights of interest. In fact, anything that wasn’t the caring and empathetic eyes of his father was becoming wildly popular in his mind.

He didn’t need this, goddamn it.  
He wasn’t a stupid child, he could handle himself.

He didn’t need sympathy, he didn’t need support. He didn’t need to be having this conversation. Sure, he had let his emotions get out-of-hand earlier when he had thrown his knife at just the sound of the Briton’s voice, and sure, he had almost lost control of them again when he found out the nations would be staying here longer. But for fuck’s sake he didn’t need to be talking about the crux of his issues.

He needed space. He needed to be left alone and not spoken to. He needed to lie down and forget the world existed even for just a minute. He needed to forget what he felt, forget the things that were bringing him to the verge of complete meltdown. He needed to lock it all away.   
He needed to forget to fighting, to forget the death and the... fire...  
He just didn’t need this.

"Ben, please look at me." His dad’s caring voice said. He couldn’t. He really couldn’t. He didn’t need support, or a hug, or his dad to tell him it was alright. Nope not at all. He refused to give in.  
He put his hands over his head and brought it down into his knees, closing his eyes. Not this, not this, not this.  
He expected more words, he expected more thoughts, more memories, but none came. A minute or so later, he really didn’t know, he was pulled into a hug, and was pat supportively on the back, and every wall in his mind broke simultaneously.  
His eyes immediately filled with tears and he sobbed into his father’s shoulder. He lost the care he had held before about keeping everything locked up, about wanting to forget. All he wanted was it to be gone, for it all to be flooded out alongside his tears and his feelings, before all that was left was the dull realization of how much he needed to let it go. 

America held him tighter. He knew it wasn’t necessarily his fault that his son was suffering like this, but his brain managed to sew together every part he played in this and shone a guilty light upon it. He should’ve done something, he could’ve done something, and if the boy weren’t falling apart in his arms right now, it would’ve been the only thing he could think about. But at this current moment, all his focus was upon how his son needed his attention and care.

It wasn’t for another ten minutes that America finally spoke, Massachusetts’ cries dying down into gentle gasps as all sobbing does when the sobber eventually runs out of energy and emotion.  
"Your allowed to feel upset about this y’know," Ben looked his Dad in the eyes, and felt an instant security and serenity. It was difficult to even remember why he had been fighting against it, maybe it was just something he had become used to.  
"You don’t have to make all your emotions anger, or be scared to deal with it." It was true, the boy was culpable of such actions. In his mind it was always portrayed as him standing up and rebelling against those emotions, morphing them all into a recognizable feeling that he could release through simple means, but in reality it was more like fear. And yeah, he was scared of feeling small, of feeling depressed and helpless as the emotions he felt overcame and dominated him, and in his current state he hadn’t the energy to deny it.

"You can talk to me, I’m here." And he did.

——————————

Surprisingly, lunch had gone smoothly for the nations, and they had enjoyed their time quite a bit. The food was unprecedentedly palatable for American food, and Louisiana and Maryland has merely grinned at the comments and plaudits they received. When other states began trickling in and the kitchen and dining area grew steadily louder, the nations began discussing what else they should do while they waited for America.  
The states that had participated in the foosball competition entered with the high-energy enthusiasm they had built up throughout the duration of the competition, and based on the shouting and spirited badinage, the nations gathered that New Jersey had won, barely defeating Georgia to achieve the title of champion.

Upon entering the room, they found their way over to their usual table, which was one to the left of the nations.  
"Hey! Good to see you guys again!" New Jersey yelled, casually shoving South Carolina out of her way, the girl responding with an equally forceful shove.  
"Dude, it’s been half an hour." Connecticut laughed, not that the exchange was funny necessarily, but there was a hyped-up convivial energy flowing amongst them, and everything just seemed joyful.  
"Aw shit, did I miss out on somethin' good?" New York said, sitting down besides New Jersey.  
"You should’ve seen it York! I fucking destroyed Georgia." Jersey cried waving her arms in the air.  
"You wish! It was a fair game." Georgia stated, attempting to give off a serious attitude, although the atmosphere at their table completely ruined it.  
"You guys should watch next time!" New Hampshire told the nations, "Vermont! Come join us!" He encouraged said state as she passed by.   
The girl just stared at him. As the fourteenth state, she usually wasn’t opposed to joining them at their table, but with the current energy, plus the nations right next to them she really preferred not to.  
"Nah, I’m going to go sit anywhere else." She responded obdurately.  
"Aw come on!" New Hampshire stood and ran after her.  
New York laughed at the interaction, then turning his head he met France’s eyes for a split second, turning away, red in the face. New Jersey jabbed him in the side with her elbow, then wiggled her eyebrows. He slapped her over the head.

America entered the kitchen and was met with a barrage of greetings from all the excited teenagers and children. Thankfully he was used to this, for if he wasn’t he would’ve found himself completely overwhelmed by just the sheer amount of eyes looking his direction. He was always gauche when he became the center of attention, although one would find it difficult to discern. While normally he would stop and chat with some of his kids, often being the last to eat because of this, he instead made a beeline for the nation’s table.  
"Hey, Britain dude! Come with me!" He asked, sounding enthusiastic, but looking beyond emotionally drained.  
The island nation hesitated for a moment before he got up and followed America out of the room. The energy of the thirteen’s table had seemingly died down, and an uncomfortable and concerned synthesis of emotions grew.  
"I wonder what rhat was about." Japan said, the nations not yet picking up the discomfort eminent to their left.

"If I had to guess it would have something to do with Massachusetts. Pops did look particularly dead inside." Virginia said, finally sitting down at the thirteen’s table.  
"I’d hate to be in that room. Wonder how many stab wounds he’ll have afterwards." North Carolina wondered out loud, the comment seemingly ameliorating the discomfort. After a minute or two, the conversation returned to normal, no longer as pumped with energy as it was before, but just as loud.

——————————

After lunch, the nations had been basically set free to do as they pleased. A few were hoping to spend time with particular states, namely their old colonies, and surely America had something planned for that, but no one had seen him or England since they had gone to talk with Massachusetts, and none of the states or nations were willing to interrupt that conversation unless it was an emergency. And so patience was required. Most of the nations opted to go outside, for the gardens were beautiful and the inside of the house had been discovered early on to be very loud. Pennsylvania has found the nations outside, China trailing behind her. The girl looked incredibly annoyed, like actually seriously annoyed which was rare for her, her character being a more sociable and amiable one (well, not always amiable.) She had dropped him off, greeted the nations, and dashed back inside and into the gym, hoping to work off some of the annoyance. 

Alaska had seen the nation of her scrutiny for the first time in person in the kitchen, twenty minutes prior. He hadn’t seen her though, and she was glad about that. The cold nation had been here a total of four hours and she hadn’t thought of a single thing to say. Foolish as it may seem, she decided to approach him without a plan, and hopefully her charismatic abilities would save her impromptu.  
America had told her when she was very young and naive that following someone for an extended period of time without them knowing was called stalking and was viewed as socially unacceptable, however she just presumed these were extenuated circumstances, so she pressed on.  
The man stopped in the flower garden, right besides the sunflowers she herself had planted. He seemed content with their positioning, planted in a way that they could be viewed from most places in the garden, but the one admiring them could not. She had planted them in such a way purposefully, so that all could see and enjoy the flowers, but also so she could lay amongst them, basking in the sunlight and be left alone while doing so. 

She hid behind a tree that was nearby, not quite ready to talk to him, but still wanting to see him. His face was very similar to hers, Alaska knew that already. Her father had told her so whenever she asked about the nation, and she had seen it on the cameras only hours prior, but she still could not believe it truly.  
From a young age, Alaska had always desired a normal childhood and a nuclear family, she never understood why (she had never found out her father had dreamed of the same thing). Alaska loved her dad, and looked up to him most of the time, his rants about aliens and superheroes during meetings were certainly flaws of his. He was caring, honest, supportive and trusting; her ideal description of a parent. She already had half of what she needed for her desired nuclear family, she had siblings and a parent. All she needed now, was a second parent and she could live out the fantasy painted picture-perfect in her mind. Everything was coming together as she had hoped.

Alaska hasn’t realized that during her introspection, she had been subconsciously moving forward and out from behind the tree. Russia (who had sat on the ground before the sunflowers) caught sight of her in the corner of his eye, and turned to face her, the child staggering back and behind the tree at the attention. Russia gripped his scarf.  
"It alright tiny child, I vill not hurt you." He said, smiling his creepy smile unintentionally. The smile did not scare the child though, it seemed to calm her.

Slowly and carefully, she moved out from behind the tree and walked towards him, stopping a little distance away.  
"Y-you are Russia right?" She questioned, already knowing the answer.  
"да, I am. And you are~ Alaska yes?" Russia inquired.  
Alaska tilted her head like a puppy, all her apprehensiveness now cloaked with childlike curiosity.  
"How did you do that." She asked.  
"Do what small child?" Russia was genuinely confused, he hadn’t done anything.  
"You rolled your r’s" Alaska moved towards him, gripping her own scarf and pulling it down off of her face a little so her words weren’t completely muffled.  
Russia rolled his r’s again, and a huge American-esque smile broke out onto Alaska’s face.  
"Do it again! Do it again!" She cheered. Later she would chastise herself for the childishness she exhibited, but at the moment she was simply overjoyed at the tiny triviality. So much for charisma.  
The Russian just smiled. The tiny girl looked like him, but she had a connatural element redolent of America, with her bright blue eyes and huge smile.   
Alaska attempted to roll her r’s like Russia, making several silly noises, none of which sounded anything like what they were intended to. She gave up eventually, deciding that she would practice in her own time, not wanting to waste any more moments of the conversation.  
"Your voice sounds funny, I mean you have an accent so it’s expected, but it’s still funny." She grinned. Russia frowned, confused by the child’s statement.  
"I do not think it very funny." Russia voiced.  
Alaska looked at him, trying to make out what had upset the nation, "I mean funny like ‘different’ not laughable." She smiled again.

A silence hung between them. She wanted to fill the quiet with conversation, but unexpectedly her charisma had switched itself off, and she had few words prepared to say.  
"So um..." she paused, looking away from him and feeling awkward, "how are you liking the house.. and us, I mean— the states?" The sentence eventually formed, making enough sense. Alaska regretted not writing some notes or prompts on her hand to supply her with talking points, granted she hadn’t thought she’d need them.  
"It is.. loud." Russia answered hesitantly, trying to step around insulting the child but not quite sure how to do so.  
"Oh it’s always loud, even when there’s barely any states here," She expressed her agreement, "I have a detailed map of all the areas in the house that’s colored-coded based on average noise intensity for both floors, plus the front and back yard. I can give you a copy if you’d like, not that I need the actual map itself, I have it memorized, but I’d like to hold onto it in case there are any variations I need to make note of." She beamed up at Russia, the nation a little surprised by the small child’s brilliance.  
"That would be very good, although it’s quite peaceful here, да?" Russia smiled, a genuine smile this time and not his unsettling one. He likes this small child, she would make for a good friend.  
"It is, I made sure of it. I planted these flowers in the middle of one of the quiet zones marked on the map. I spend a lot of time here, and if it matters to you, the flowers look the nicest at 2:30pm in Summer and 1:30pm in Winter. The sun shines perfectly." Alaska had taken profuse notes on the matter, sitting in the same spot for hours just to find the perfect time. The changing of the seasons that year had elicited a lot more note taking, but it had been absolutely worth it. These flowers were one of her joys at this house, and made the noise of the house easier to tolerate.  
"I vill keep that in mind." The cold nation had planned on coming back to the flowers later in the day, but now he wanted to stay there until he saw the golden moment the young girl had informed him of.  
"Just make sure if you come back that you don’t bring California or Arizona or any of the other states with you. It’s much better when it’s quiet or at least when the company isn’t loud and stentorian. It ruins the peace." Alaska grumbled. The times prior that this had happened jabbed at her. Those happy afternoons ruined, turned into bitter memories.  
"Do not worry малышка, I will just bash their heads with pipe!" Russia exclaimed, his pipe appearing in his hand. 

Alaska just smiled, very delighted.  
He was the perfect second parent.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alaska: My second parent has to be super loving and nice.   
> Russia: I will murder your siblings  
> Alaska: He’s perfect. 
> 
> Ha ha. I used my response to trauma as Massachusetts’ response! Isn’t that cool! Hahaha i promise I’m fine.  
> You may be thinking, am I ok? Do I need help? And the answer to that is [redacted].  
> Also, I will subtly pepper in the fact that New York is gay and there is nothing you can do to stop me.
> 
> I originally planned to make this story only 7-8 chapters, but I’m not even nearly done so I guess it’s going to be much longer.


	9. Moving On

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The traumas of the past are discussed, accepted, and moved on from.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nine chapters already? I’d be surprised if my writing style wasn’t so verbose.  
> Ha I’ve been having a bad week, so this chapter is going to be even worse than expected!

History is dark. Even taking just a minute to think about all the death and suffering that occurred beyond your control will eventually becomes too much. The mind tends to stray from these thoughts, empathy takes a lot of energy and time to properly process and understand, and so our minds learn what to ignore. Trouble is when you’re the center of that death and suffering, the thoughts don’t leave the mind as easily as they enter.  
The states had their fair share of horrific memories, from the eldest, Delaware, to the youngest, Hawaii. They all have a memory or two, or more, that will never quite leave them alone and at peace, and as time continues it’s span forward there will only be more added to the pile.

Every state had a different coping mechanism to deal with their trauma. For Oregon it was hiking, for Arkansas it was quilting, California and Hawaii would surf together, Idaho would go fishing or hunting, Florida would go to the beach etc. For the states, being in their natural environment, doing something they were comfortable with and enjoyed thoroughly became incredibly therapeutic.   
The states found comfort in one another as well, whether it was spending time together, using each other to distract themselves or competing in whatever frivolous competition was the talk of the house.

Needless to say, while the memories themselves could never be erased, the states had ways to cope with whatever they found they had to deal with. The traumas and stresses were in the past, and could never be forgotten, for they were etched into their minds; scars the states could never rid themselves of, but could be looked back upon with the knowledge that everything turned out alright. The states could view their traumas alongside the gift of the present, and the hope of the future.

So everything wasn’t all bad.

——————————

England had been confused when he was singled out and led out of the kitchen, but America hadn’t left any room for arguing. When they entered America’s office, and there on the couch sat a tear-stained and jaded Massachusetts, the situation he was in, and the conversation that awaited them became a little more pellucid. He was immediately on edge with the memory of the knife and the tension still present in his mind, but the boy seemed harmless for the time being, so England did his best to hide his apprehension in favor of, hopefully, a propitious outcome.  
"Why don’t you take a seat and we can start talking things out." America gave England a little, polite shove forward, an indicator for him to sit down without question.

Massachusetts himself seemed uncomfortable if anything. When he had told his father he wanted to speak with England about the past and his traumas he had felt emotionally prepared, but now he was regretting his decision. Alfred told him that if it became too much, they could put the discussion on hold until he was ready to continue, but Massachusetts never backed down from anything, it was as much a strength of his as it was a flaw.  
And so he sat on the couch, waiting for the correct moment to broach the subject. He looked at the Brit for a moment, catching his eye. He found himself with a new sense of determination. He was either going to talk about this, or he was going to kill the Briton to maintain his repute, and his dad had forbidden him to kill the Briton.

America stood next to where his son sat, he didn’t exactly feel his presence in the room was beneficial for the conversation, but if Massachusetts got out of hand with anger, or broke down from sadness, Alfred wanted to be there to help, it was both his parental and hero instincts.  
"So, I’m not exactly sure why I’m here, but I assume it’s to discuss previous conflicts." England stated. The two interlocutors pretended Massachusetts hadn't flinched at England’s voice.  
"Yeah, I wanna talk about uh... you know." Massachusetts’ wavering voice surprised him less than his ability to properly term the events of the past.

England took a deep breath, "Well I suppose I should start with an... apology of sorts. It was never my intention to hurt your or any of your siblings, I wasn’t aware of your existence," England shot America a quick, hurt look, "and I wouldn’t have acted so extremely if I had known. That being said, there was still a war going on so certain measures were still required."  
"Measures like killing my people and.. the B-Boston massacre." Now he looked away.

The event in itself had been minor in proportion to other tragedies of the war, but Massachusetts was only around five or six (mentally and physically) and the massacre had hurt like a gunshot to the heart, which essentially it had been. He had never forgotten the copious amount of pain he had found himself in, the blood and tears that flowed profusely from his body, the panic in his father’s eyes followed by the anger possessing his father’s person when his pain had finally subsided. He had never forgotten, could never forget.  
Massachusetts hadn’t even realized he had begun to hold himself, as he was customary to do when the memories found their way into his vision. His father placed a sturdy hand of his shoulder, and Massachusetts sat up again.  
"War aur not, it still hurt like shit." He said. It was an understatement, to say the least.  
"And I am really, truly sorry," England started, "I understand if you’re angry—"  
"Angry‽ ANGRY‽ Of course I’m fucking angry! My people hadn’t thought— I hadn’t thought uf a serious rebellion much until you shot my people fah rightfully protesting. I didn’t want to fight, you were being cruel! I was so young, I didn’t know what pain was, until I was lying aun the goddamn ground screaming in agony with blood everywhere! Who cares if you knew I was a thing‽ You hurt Dad just as badly, if not more and I’m pretdee fucking sure you knew he was alive! Do you understand? I’ve nevah been able to get over it, the guns, the fighting, the death, the fire— and I’m not a fucking idiot, I’m a personification, I’m gonah feel pain, but Jesus Christ I just... I just..." Massachusetts paused, he was crying again but he wasn’t ready to break down; he still had more to say.  
"I don’t wanah be angry. I’m so tired uf everything being built up. I know it won’t evah really go away, but I don’t want it to keep affecting me... you know? I wanah move aun." With that, he finally deflated.

England just gawked at him. The nation felt immensely guilty as well as shocked. When he had entered the room and saw the boy, he expected shouting and many extreme emotions, but not like this. This shouting had been less angry and more emphatically sad, and then followed by the boy breaking down, England felt his old parental inclinations kicking in, urging him to comfort the boy.  
England looked to America, who sensed his glance. America backed off from Massachusetts and looked from England, to the boy, and back to England, silently insinuating that England should comfort him, and so the island nation did. He got up and sat on the couch next to the boy, and pulled him into a hug.

America just smiled at the scene. Although he was Massachusetts’ father, he felt like he was imposing on a delicate familial happening, and although he wasn’t the best at reading the atmosphere, he sensed it was time for him to leave the two alone. Alfred imagined that there were no more risks that he was responsible for managing.

——————————

The nations sat in the middle of the backyard patio, making small talk and doing mindless activities to pass the time. It’s not that they couldn’t go inside and introduce themselves to the states, it’s just that they felt they shouldn’t. There were clearly personal affairs occurring within the walls of the house, and the nations didn’t want to obtrude. Well, most of the nations anyway.

"Do you think they like pasta? Oh do you think they will let me cook pasta for them?" Italy was happily rambling, the nations ignoring him for the most part.  
"Pasta’s pretty good. I mean, personally I prefer pizza, but pasta’s high up there for European food, I mean if it’s made in Europe." Came a voice behind them.  
It belonged to a blond boy, his hair a slightly different shade of blond to America’s. It was also longer, with long strands mirrored on both sides of his face. He had two strands of hair sticking up on top of his head, and his eyes were identical in hue to America’s.  
"Ve~! I’m so happy you think so." Italy exclaimed.  
The boy laughed, "Name’s Illinois. Love to hang around and chat for a bit, but I’ve got other stuff to do. I’m sure they’ll let you in the kitchen if you ask though. Just watch out for Louisiana, the woman’s very defensive of her kitchen." He smiled, before walking inside.

"Um.. hi." Came a little voice a few moments later. There stood a little girl, one the nations recognized. It was one of the girls who had burst into the meeting room, the one who had been in tears, the brunette. Taking a proper glance at her now, the nations could see the scar on her right-inner thigh that was half-covered by the shorts she wore. "I didn’t get a chance to properly introduce myself to you, I know dad did, but... Aloha! I’m Hawaii, it’s really nice to meet you all." She beamed, then cocked her head, "What are you all doing outside?" She asked.  
"America is buzy und ve do not vant to impose." Germany answered the child, she made a little ‘Ah’ sound in recognition.  
"You fucking noisy bastards are annoying. It’s quieter out here." Romano stated.  
Spain gasped, "Romano, you cannot say those things to a child!"  
"Oh please, have you seen the house she grew up in? She probably swears more than me!" Romano cried, and while it wasn’t true, Hawaii did swear quite a bit but she was aware of how uncomfortable it made the people she spoke to.

Hawaii surveyed the nations quickly, and her eyes landed upon a familiar face. She was sure she had seen him somewhere, his black hair, black eyes. It took her a couple of seconds, but it landed.  
It was the bad man who hurt her from the sky.  
He didn’t look bad now though. He looked peaceful and happy, not threatening like she had pictured him. Her father had told her a while ago that war and violence made people turn into different people; bad people. He said it had made himself bad, but she didn’t believe that. America had told her that the bad man who hurt her from the sky was mean, but had become a better person, and now was peaceful and nice, and looking at the man now, she couldn’t help but believe those words. She was still nervous though.   
The dark-haired man noticed her staring, and instantly looked more serious. Hawaii took a deep breath and waltzed towards him.  
"Y-you’re familiar. Japan right?" She asked timidly.  
"Yes, rhat is me." He replied, just as timidly.  
There was a beat of silence. Hawaii closed her eyes for a second let herself become filled with determination,  
"You hurt me, but I forgive you because dad says you’re really nice now and I want to be friends," she declared quickly, not breathing in-between her words, or opening her eyes until after she had completed her sentence.  
Japan was surprised, but beyond relieved that the small child had forgiven his actions.  
"Gomen-nasai young Hawaii for hurting you, I would very much rike to be your friend." He bowed his head respectfully.  
Hawaii was overwhelmed with joy, the man was very nice! She was very glad to have given him a chance; now she had a brand new friend!  
"Ah right, aru~. He bombed your harbor during World War II." China commented, he had temporarily forgotten what had occurred between his (ex)brother and the small child.

"Yeah, I was very young, Dad said I would’ve been two or something. I don’t really remember much, just pain. Sometimes I get flashbacks, they’re not fun but I don’t remember what I saw during them after and they don’t normally last very long."  
"You seem like a very happy child. Comme une petite Amérique." France smiled, dazed by the girl’s insouciance.  
Hawaii just stared blankly at him, "I have no idea what you just said." She deadpanned, causing the Frenchman to laugh.

"Hawaii!" Came the voice Alaska, said child running out from the flower garden looking very excited.  
"Oh Niki! How did it g—" Hawaii started, but was grabbed by the hand and dragged inside, "W-wait!"  
The nations just stared at the girls.

——————————

Alaska had dragged Hawaii into her icy cold room, and Hawaii had already complained internally at both the cold, and the fact her arm hurt from being pulled up the stairs.  
"Good news!" Alaska shouted, which was unusual for the girl. She very rarely raised her voice, using her words to communicate what most people would communicate with their emotions and volume.  
"It went well then?" Hawaii asked, matching her enthusiasm.  
"Very well! He’s perfect!" Alaska waved her arms and then squealed happily. Hawaii was very happy for her, but then her happiness morphed into something different: fear.  
"Didn’t Hannah say he was a scary bad man who hurt people with a pipe?" Hawaii asked fearfully.  
Alaska thought on this for a second, "He did say he would hit you guys with a pipe if you disturbed the sunflowers." She said. Hawaii quavered.  
"I’m sure he wouldn’t if I asked him not to." Alaska shrugged, not wanting to continue that conversation. Hawaii visibly relaxed at the comment, knowing Alaska wouldn’t let anyone harm her, and if she could control Russia like that her safety was guaranteed.  
"How are you gonna get Dad to accept this, wouldn’t this mean they’d have to get married? Would Dad even be allowed to get married?" Hawaii didn’t really ask Alaska this, just let the questions expand out in the open, but Alaska answered anyway.  
"Well, I’m sure he wouldn’t say no. I may be biased but I think they go great together. And besides he’s gay so he probably wouldn’t care." She casually stated, waving her hand dismissively.

Hawaii looked unsure, but her sister very rarely showed so much enthusiasm over love and family related topics, and whenever Nikita came up with a plan or idea for something she wanted, she worked incredibly hard and obtained it no matter what. There was no stopping her this far in.  
"Okay, if you say so. Can we get out of your room now? It’s freezing." Hawaii shivered, she was much more used to warmer climates.  
"Is not!"  
"Is too!"  
"Is not!"

Despite Alaska’s disagreement, they left the room anyway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alaska: Now I’m no love expert, but Dad’s gay and I have a good, single man right here so uh...
> 
> I know I’ve spent a considerable amount of time on the whole, Massachusetts England ordeal, but I feel like trauma isn’t something that can just be glossed over and set aside. Massachusetts! Deserves! Love! And lots! Of! Hugs!  
> Also Arkansas quilts and is super good at it, don’t @ me.  
> Hannah for those wondering is Indiana, it’s her human name. No, it’s not Montana (her human name is Harper).
> 
> *Language things*  
> • "Comme une petite Amérique." - Like a little America.


	10. Talking With The Colonizers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some of the states talk with their old colonizers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PLEASE READ THIS BIT  
> I want y’all to know, I’m sticking to the fact that this fic has no major ships. While Alaska wants to set her Dad up with Russia, there will be no Russia/America specific moments (unless you squint real hard and jump conclusions, and hey I don’t blame ya).  
> Ok thank you, you may continue.

Maybe it’s because they’re American, or because they’re teenagers, or maybe because they are immortal creatures just trying to make it through everyday life, or perhaps a combination of the three, but the states were fantastic at keeping grudges. These ranged from minor grudges, like when California has inadvertently claimed in front of the entire household that her beaches were far superior to Florida, and the Eastern state had never forgotten it, to more serious grudges, such as those held over the civil war.

Now as American children, and America’s children, the states often saw those minor grievances as challenges to rise up to, for example using what I described above, when California had claimed to the house about her beaches’ superiority, Florida made an effort to herd the entire household to one of his beaches and held a fireworks display over the ocean, (California had responded by inviting the household to one of her beaches the next year and thus a tradition sprouted).  
Those larger grudges, on the other hand, were rarely seen among the states as challenges, but rather as cruel and bitter points of erosion. The states knew which topics to avoid: the topics that would bring up the memories and emotions that were the appurtenances to the utter anger of the grudges. Thankfully, very few fights and altercations have broken out over these painful feelings (well, if you eradicated the civil war in its entirety), and given that the states knew the pain of the alternative to the peace, they’d rather those grudges remain silent and unspoken of.

Needless to say, beneath those Hollywood smiles and bright, childish eyes, there lay a pit of anger and resentment, filled with the silent aggravation of painful memories. Alright, maybe that may be a tad bit overdramatic.

But they’re American, so it’s expected!

——————————

Between the chaos of the states and the jitteriness of the nations, Canada found himself very thankful for the quiet company of Maine and Michigan as they sat around the table in one of the side den rooms, where it was surprisingly peaceful and pleasurable.

Canada and Maine had always gotten along (if not for a few bumps along the way), and based on history and proximity, the two were very close. If America wasn’t a peerless influence in her life, Maine would look to Canada as if he were a supreme being.  
Michigan and Canada’s relationship was a little more unorthodox. Michigan hadn’t too much reverence for the nation, and saw him more as a buddy or a fun Uncle (even though Canada was way to shy to actually be a ‘fun’ uncle). The state would casually hop over the border and show up at Canada’s house, whether the nation was there or not, and just relax until he felt like going home. Sometimes the two would go and do something together, but for the most part Michigan was just there in the background while Canada did something else. The first few times this had happened, it confused the hell out of Canada, but he soon learnt to adapt to the strange behaviors of the boy (he was strange just like his dad, eh?)

And now, the three sat around the round table, partaking in what could almost be viewed as the American equivalent of a tea party. They sometimes made small talk with one another, but they were mostly reveling in the peace and quiet. Well, at least until the door flew open.

"Hey bro there you are! Thought you disappeared." America yelled, causing Canada to almost drop his tea in shock. The two states seemed less than surprised at the loud intrusion, deeming if well overdue if anything.  
"O-oh hello America, how did things go with the thirteen?" Canada asked, still a little in shock.  
"Alright for the most part, Massachusetts tried to kill Iggy but they got everything sorted out." America shrugged as if the events that occurred prior hadn’t had a significant emotional impact on both him and the two others who had been in the room as well.  
"That kid can be a little aggressive, eh?" Canada commented.  
"Yeah, well, I’m hoping things will be fine from here on out. The rest of the colonies seemed to be coping fine with the nations, at least they weren’t trying to kill them. I mean, they weren’t exactly happy to be seeing them, at least I don’t think they were," America rambled, sitting down on the couch beside his brother, "Hm, I’m sure there was a reason I was looking for you."  
"Wait, Massachusetts and England got things ‘sorted out’? What kind of nightmare did that entail." Michigan asked, not looking up from his cup.  
"Crying, and a lot of it." America answered, snuggling a little into the couch.  
"That’s surprising," Michigan looked at his dad and raised an eyebrow in question.  
"Not really," Maine answered for America. Michigan just turned to her with the same expression. "I mean, Massachusetts only gets angry when he gets emotional, so if he tried to kill England he was probably upset about something other than just the fact that he’s England." She explained.  
Michigan returned his glance to his cup, "You and your observational skills."

"Dad, dont you have guests to host?" Maine asked America after a beat of silence, America’s eyes widened in realization.  
"Oh fuck, right." He got up and moved towards the door, turning around for a second once he remembered what he had momentarily forgotten, "Oh yeah, and the nations are staying here for obscure reasons that piss me off, that’s what I came to tell you."  
"Eh?" Canada almost dropped his tea again.  
"Apparently their hotel ‘closed’, and the nations have to stay here because of..." he groaned, "safety reasons."  
Canada opened his mouth to respond and voice his thoughts, but America had already left the room.

"That seems suspicious as fuck." Michigan commented, eyes wide.  
"There’s no way that that isn’t connected with the nations visiting the house." Canada’s face grew serious.  
"No it’s not." Came a voice. Leaning against the door quietly, was Nevada.  
"When did you come in?" Michigan asked.  
"He came in when Dad went out so that it would be silent and cool. Anyway there’s more important things to talk about," Maine said as Nevada sat down on the couch where America had sat moments prior.  
"Yes, you see, this morning Alaska came to me..."

——————————

"The hero is finally here again!" America yelled, entering the backyard patio.  
"Finally, vhere is England?" Germany asked, noticing the island nation’s lack of presence.  
"That’s none of your business. Also why are you guys out here?" America asked, he had expected the nations to be settling in, making themselves at home in their temporary bedrooms or talking with some of the states, but no apparently they had taken none of that initiative.  
"You American bastards are too much of a hassle." Romano stayed dryly.  
"Why did you come then?" America asked, already knowing Romano was more attached to the states than he would admit to.  
"B-because you American fucks would have found me and brought me here anyway!" Romano retorted. America supposed that probably would’ve been the case, the states were as equally attached to Romano.  
"Sure, so do you guys want to go meet some states or get comfortable in your guest rooms or what?" America asked.  
"You don’t hafe a plan for us to do?" Germany was tense at the American’s incompetency.  
"Dude I was awake until 2am last night, so I don’t think that in the past 24 hours I have once been in the mindset to think that far ahead." America said, sounding exhausted.  
"Well, ‘ow about we find our rooms then?" France suggested. The nations all agreed, no one else having any plans of action.

"Where’s Russia?" America noticed the cold nations absence.  
"He was in the flower garden I think." Spain answered America’s question.  
"I can go get him!" Alaska, who had returned outside after hearing her father was there, raced by the nations and into the garden before America could comment on her suggestion to help.

——————————

There was a knock at the door of Spain’s temporary bedroom, the nation hadn’t the time to answer it before it opened. A boy with brown hair and green eyes, both identical in color to his, and a face of similar shape walked in and closed the door behind him. He wore a green shirt with a Mickey Mouse silhouette on the bottom and shorts, and his skin was almost an identical shade to Spain’s. Spain, to put it simply, was disoriented.  
"Im glad I got the right room this time. I’ve already been tackled by Italy. ¿Pero tu eres España, si?" Hearing the boy speak his native tongue was no less disorientating for Spain.  
"Sí lo soy. ¿Debo asumir que eres Florida?" He asked, attempting to compose himself.  
"Sí, no me sorprende que me hayas reconocido. Quiero decir, sabía que te parecías a mí, pero esto es raro." Florida replied. The boy was just as astounded as the nation that they looked so similar. Obviously, the chatty America being his dad, he had overheard comments that the two looked similar but the idea had never properly solidified itself in his mind. Maybe he should’ve had a little more faith in his fathers words.  
"Es verdad. Tuve una fuerte influencia en tu estado después de todo. Si no fuera por ese estúpido amante de las hamburguesas, aún serías mi colonia. Puedes volver a mí en cualquier momento." Spain’s words weren’t intended to be creepy sounding, maybe it was because of his disorientation or the fact that the child who stood before him showed such strong resemblance of him, but his offer for Florida to come back to him had been completely genuine.

The fantastic laugh that erupted from Florida following the offer, however, surprised the nation. He hadn’t expected the state to laugh at such a suggestion, and while the laugh itself was hard to comprehend, it sounded patronizing.  
That wasn’t what staggered the nation however, what truly shocked him was that the laugh wasn’t Spain’s. Every part of the boy, from his looks to the languages he spoke seemed to be the same as Spain. But his laugh was so undeniably foreign that he was completely thrown out of the waters. He could place the laugh however, it wasn’t difficult. It was America’s laugh. It was loud and uncontrolled, and yet contagious in a manner that was often associated with the young nation.  
"Listen buddy," Florida returned to English, "You May have colonized me way back in the day, but that doesn’t mean I’m gonna come running back to you. You. Are. Not. My. Father," he emphasized the words in a biting manner, and a little part of Spain’s heart broke. "I know you’re a caring person, I heard it from Romano, from Italy when he tackled me and from my dad as well, but I belong to the United States of America and the United States of America only. I didn’t exist until I became a part of this country, and I intend to stay a part of this country."

Spain had gone quiet. The tirade had grounded him, bringing an end to his disorientation.  
"But, if you like," Florida picked up the conversation once more, "We can still be friends or something like that." He shrugged.  
"Lo siento por mi sugerencia," was all Spain could manage to say.  
"Eh, no biggie. Should’ve expected it to be honest," Florida straightened, and prepared himself to leave.  
"Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go and kidnap a goose." He said, nonchalantly.  
Spain perked up, "Wait, what?" He asked, very confused.  
"I’m gonna kidnap a goose, I need one for... a reason." Florida said, squinting his eyes in an angry manner.

Spain just looked at the child with confusion as he left the room. That certainly was an interesting interaction.

——————————

France’s door was open; the distant voices of the energetic states was pleasing to the ear. He was currently organizing his things, the nations’ belongings had been collected and delivered to them by Virginia and Delaware, who apparently had convinced the already exasperated manager of the hotel to let them take them. France felt bad for that poor man.

France himself was euphoric. When he had found out America had children, the idea had seemed preposterous and vexatious, but now, he was beside himself with excitement. All the youthful and spirited children, a few whom he had already met and already become attached to. Meeting Louisiana, his old colony, had truly been the most exciting and entrancing part of the day. She had spoken French with him, and resembled him in her beautifully feminine ways, as well as her parental/maternal instincts and culinary experience. He couldn’t help but feel excited to find out how else she resembled him.  
His private conversation with New York had been entertaining. The boy’s accent was difficult to listen to, but France’s trained ear could understand it. The Statue of Liberty had been France’s intended gift for America, but finding out it meant so much to New York was certainly a bonus for the nation. Not only did the state love his gift, he seemed to love him as well. Being the le pays d'amour, France had a keen eye for spotting love and romantic attraction, himself falling victim to such things before, and the teenager had not Done well with hiding his feelings.  
The nation had no intention of pursuing anything with the boy, not only would his father break all of France’s bones, but also the boy was young and innocent and in no way right for a relationship like that. France himself also felt more of a parental interest over the child rather than a romantic interest. But he was keen to see how the boy’s feelings would grow and change. 

"Ethan, what are you doing?" The nation heard a voice whisper behind him. He whipped around to look at his doorway, and there stood three teenagers, staring at him like deer caught in the head lights of an oncoming car.  
One of the states was a girl, who looked no older than 15. She had long blondish-ginger hair and blue eyes with a few freckles on her face. She wore a hoodie that was both cobalt blue and yellow, and jeans.  
The other two states looked almost identical. They were boys, both with black, spiky hair (one of their hair stuck out to the left and the other’s to the right), their eyes were a deeper blue than America’s, a blue that resembled his own eyes. The only difference in clothing among the boys were that on one of their shirts their was an ‘N’ and on the other an ‘S’.

The girl laughed awkwardly, "Uh, hi there."  
"Bonjour, may I ask who you are." France asked calmly. The three looked to one another.  
The girl stepped forward first, "Sure, well I’m Nebraska. It’s nice to meet you." She smiled in a way to amend the awkwardness of the situation.  
"I’m South Dakota," one of the boys stepped forwarded.  
"And, I’m North Dakota," the other, identical boy said. Ah, the letters made sense now.  
"So uh," Nebraska tapped her fingers together, "You’re France huh, that’s neat." She laughed awkwardly again, looking away.  
"Jesus Charlie," South Dakota commented.  
"You suck at this," North Dakota followed with.  
Her face turned red with embarrassment, "Shut up you two! I’m doing fine."  
"Not really," they said in unison.

"Are you two twins?" France asked the identical boys.  
"We sure are!" North Dakota said, flashing a peace sign.  
"Came into existence on the same day and everything." South Dakota said with a wink.  
"We’re quite different though," North stated.  
"Very different," South Stated.  
The fact that the poses they were both doing now mirrored one another did not help their case.  
"Right well," Nebraska said, "You’re France. Obviously. Our states used to be part of the Louisiana Purchase, we just wanted to say hi."  
"We came to spy on you." North casually divulged.  
"Ethan you ignorant dickface." The southern twin facepalmed.  
Nebraska just awkwardly laughed again, "Anyway, now that we’ve said hi, we’re just going ta get going."

"Wait," France walked forward towards the three states, "You were my colony, oui? I would love to spend time with you somewhere other than this guest room, if you would like that is." France said with a smile.  
"Yeah!" North yelled.  
"That would be super awesome!" South enthused.  
"Sounds like a plan!" Nebraska looked like she was about to burst. While France would’ve loved to have conversed more with the children, he wasn’t cruel and the girl really needed a breath of fresh air.  
"C’était un plaisir à vous rencontrez." He smiled and winked, turning back to where his suitcase lay on his bed.  
"Nice to meet you too baguette!" He heard one of the twins say, followed by the sound of a harsh slap. A couple moments later, France heard three sets of footsteps leave in the opposite direction.  
These American children were as interesting as they were entertaining.

——————————

Alaska had originally found her way outside to talk to her father about her ideas, but couldn’t help but jump at the opportunity to show Russia to his room. She had spent a good two hours with him after, talking about their interests and hobbies. Nikita hoped the cold nation had developed as much as an interest in her as she had with him. In the excitement of spending time with Russia, she had completely forgotten to talk with her father. She could always do that later though.

After that wonderful time spent bonding with the nation, Alaska found her way back to her room to properly think out the rest of her plan. In the chaos and elation of hearing the news that the nations were visiting, she may or may not have rushed her plan a little. It was the right call to act with hastiness, it was easier to get them to stay at the house the earlier it was in the day, as there would be time for them to settle, and America had proper time to think out the consequences of not making them stay. Although in her rush, the rest of Alaska’s plan had been made with little cogitation.  
She sat down at her desk before the paper with the plan on it, and she crossed off the first two steps which in summary consisted of: 1) Forcing the nations to remain at the house with little resistance, and 2) Bond with Russia. Now she ruminated over the rest of the plan.

She wanted her father to marry Russia, and that came with certain concerns. First, her father wasn’t one to be forced into situations, he had a rebellious heart after all. Now there were two solutions to this issue, she could either set the two up so that her father would willingly marry the Russian, but that would take a long time and couldn’t be done in the timespan she had, or she could trick him into accepting it. There were many ways she could go about this, and she brainstormed them on the paper.  
The next major flaw with the marriage would be the political interference, but Alaska hoped that if she could come up with a suitable reason for the two nations to marry as people rather than nations, then politics shouldn’t be too much of a hassle to obviate. There would certainly be some fine tuning to be done. Within a half an hour, Alaska had perfected her plan and was ready to see it through to the end.

And it would work perfectly if she had any say in the matter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No one:  
> Not a single soul:  
> The gremlin that lives in my brain: Hey guys the dick is here!!
> 
> Hehehehe Florida is a little demon child. What did he need the goose for? You’ll see soon on the news don’t worry.
> 
> Yay, more Canada!! I did not forget the poor boy, do not worry.
> 
> *Language Things*
> 
> • "¿Pero tu eres España, si?" - But you are Spain, yes?  
> • "Sí lo soy. ¿Debo asumir que eres Florida?" - Yes I am. Should I assume you to be Florida?  
> • "Sí, no me sorprende que me hayas reconocido. Quiero decir, sabía que te parecías a mí, pero esto es raro." - Yes, I'm not surprised that you recognized me. I mean, I knew you looked like me, but this is weird.  
> • "Es verdad. Tuve una fuerte influencia en tu estado después de todo. Si no fuera por ese estúpido amante de las hamburguesas, aún serías mi colonia. Puedes volver a mí en cualquier momento." - It is true. I had a strong influence on your state after all. If it wasn't for that stupid hamburger lover, you'd still be my colony. You can come back to me at any time.  
> • "Lo siento por mi sugerencia" - Sorry for my suggestion.  
> • "le pays d'amour" - the country of love  
> • "C’était un plaisir à vous rencontrez." - It was a pleasure to meet you.


	11. Thinking Back

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nevada does some investigating, Pennsylvania talks about Prussia and Romano gets dragged around and loved by the states. Poor Romano.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heehoo this is a long chapter, so strap in my guys, gals, and nonbinary pals.  
> I really didn’t expect this fic to be this long, but it’s only about half way done :/ Does that bother you guys? I know some people prefer shorter fics.

For America, one of the most emotionally-straining aspects of parenting, filled with both positive and negative emotions, was watching his kids grow up and take on lives essentially separate from his own. Now, as an advocate for freedom and for choice, America never put too much pressure on his children to evolve in a particular way, he let them choose their own interests and develop their own personalities. But time takes a toll on even the strongest of hearts, and as his children grew up and became new people, he couldn’t help but feel adjunct to their lives.  
He made an effort to include his kids in his life, and in turn the states made an effort to include him in their lives, but their daily lives were independent from one another and only included each other in certain circumstances.

And that was a good thing in a way, Alfred sometimes thought. He had never wanted his kids to be permanently dependent upon his parental influence. He wanted them to grow and flourish as individuals, but perhaps he missed them being young and more connected to him than he would admit. Oh that is some beautiful irony.  
It’s true that as Alfred’s children grew and became ever the more independent from him, that he began to understand his fellow nations more than he had, or at least the nations who had younger siblings that had grown further apart from them. And while America was determined to keep his nation life and his children discrete, he may have silently empathized with some of the nations when they were hurting over such things.

Needless to say, throughout the years the states had grown as individuals, discovering hobbies and passions that didn’t necessarily relate to their father. He encouraged this growth, and yet he couldn’t help but feel a certain sadness at watching their lives change and continue without him.

Well, age does make one sentimental does it not?

——————————

The conversation had hushed for a minute, each of the interlocutors immersed in their own thoughts. Nevada had recounted the events of the hours prior and explained his suspicions of Alaska’s doings. I mean, obviously the child was up to something, and her overly-secretive nature only led to a great deal of ideas and theories.  
Canada, Maine and Michigan had all been set a little on edge, knowing full well that when Alaska set her mind upon something, it was very rare for her to be persuaded to stop. If she had gone this far to keep the nations at the DC house, she obviously had a plan or two ready to act on and given the measures she had already taken, it appeared that her plans were extreme ones.

Meanwhile, Nevada’s insides were buzzing with the thrill of this mystery, the excitement of laying out all the pieces of the puzzle in the hope of connecting them, the adventure of delving into unknown circumstances in a hope of making sense of everything, the rush of just thinking about the joy from solving everything. He was having a hard time keeping all of these feelings under lock and key inside himself. His outward appearance of a suave and charming figure had to be maintained, but he was inching ever closer to ditching the suit and letting the chaos of excitement break through. Such a thing had happened before, many times as a matter of fact, but he usually did this within the comfort of his own state, where he could be shielded by the fortune of anonymity. But here there were familiar faces lurking in every room and hallway.  
His thoughts momentarily drifted off to when his mask shattered in 2017 at the reveal of AATIP, and how difficult it had been for him conceal the conspiracist side of him the rest of the month. That was probably the first time his siblings had seen him sloppy and childish, and he would never live it down. It certainly was hard living the life of a dual-sided fellow.

"Alaska hasn’t had any bad interactions with the nations throughout history right?" Canada asked, his tea (which had been mixed with maple syrup) going cold as it sat on the table.  
"Well there was the Battle of Dutch Harbor during World War II, but she’s never shown any hard feelings over it. I think she’d be more vocal about it if she did." Michigan commented, not letting his tea suffer the same fate.  
"It wouldn’t be any negative feelings that would make her do this. She would probably just kidnap the nation she was mad at and hurt them then. Keeping all the nations here either means that she wants to do something to all of them, or she had to rush a part of whatever plan she’s following, resulting in all the nations staying here." Maine cumulated.  
"You and your observations." Michigan rolled his eyes.

"Maybe we could ask aboot, see if any of the other states know anything." Canada suggested.  
"Ooh, on my way to this room, I passed by the gym and Pennsylvania was rambling to herself about having to retrieve an ‘unawesome old man’ from the hotel and if I recall correctly, and I do of course, that would be China." Nevada stated, proud at himself for gathering that information.  
"We could also talk to Hawaii, she probably wouldn’t hide much from us." Michigan guessed.  
"Should we tell America?" Canada asked. He himself thought they should, but then again America had enough on his plate, trying to balance his parental, host and nations duties all at once.  
"Not yet. I mean, nothing particularly bad has come from all of this, so there’s no point stressing him out unless there’s an actual reason." Maine said, taking the last sip of her tea.

"Alright, well I’m going to hunt down China. Are you going to go to Hawaii?" Nevada asked, standing and adjusting his gloves.  
"After I’m done with my tea," Michigan stated. Canada picked up his tea and took a sip.  
"Eh, it’s lukewarm," he sighed.

——————————

It had taken only about twenty minutes for the nations to get comfortable in their temporary rooms, and after all their belongings had been put away and properly dealt with they congregated in the little lounge area adjoined to the guest hall, awaiting America’s word. That’s some weird déjà-vu. However this time, instead of idle chitchat, the nations were discussing their previous relations with certain states, Spain’s interaction with Florida being the conversation starter.  
He was still a little hurt over the blatant denial of his parenthood over the state, although he wouldn’t show it plainly to the other nations. It was a weird hurt, to be upset over a child who looks almost identical to you denying your presence in his life. Spain didn’t even know if he was in the right to be upset about it.

England sat on the couch closest to the wall, looking a little down. His talk with Massachusetts had been fruitful in the end, the boy’s anger and hatred for him had died away and he was more open to amending relations, but there had been so much crying and stress related to the boy’s trauma that it had been exhausting.  
The two of them, in personality and looks, we’re very similar. They were both emotionally-stunted and tended to hide their real feelings with a shield of anger and stubbornness, they were both major bookworms as well, (as he had heard from America). The major difference in their personalities was that Massachusetts was deep at heart a rebel, and England was not as rebellious. With their looks, Massachusetts really did just look like a shorter, rougher and less genteel version of England, and that was a little startling. Why did some the states take on such a similar look to their colonizers? Was there even a reason?

In the middle of their conversation, Virginia entered through the doorway, a serious-as-ever look planted on her face. Some of the nations wondered if she ever smiled. She had that air of mordant confidence that seemed to ward off any positive social interaction.  
"I assume then that you’re all done sorting your rooms out?" She asked the nations, receiving many variants of ‘yes’. "Excellent, well I’ve come here to tell you that Dad has some unanticipated work to do that relates to your hotel situation, so he may not be as available as he thought he would be today. He told me specifically to tell you that you may explore the house if you want, and you do not have to sit aimlessly outside waiting for guidance. That being said, Delaware and I, as well as most of the thirteen are here to help if you need it. I also have some maps of the house, even though you’ve been given the tour the house is quite large and labyrinthine to guests such as yourselves. Now then, any questions." She stated, very formally.  
"During the tour, you said we courd not go in the basement. Does that rure still appry?" Japan asked, raising his hand a little.  
"All rules and restrictions stated during the tour still apply unless told otherwise." She answered.  
"Honhon, is there by chance any wine in this house?" France asked, a smirk on his face.

Virginia paused, thinking out her words carefully, "That depends."  
"On what?"  
"Whether or not you brought money with you. Come talk to me if you did." She smiled, a little smug; well that answered that question. And with that, she turned and hurried out the door, not willing to answer any follow-up questions.

"Quelle une fille intéressante." France commented.  
"You’re telling me, you should see her when she’s like drunk out of her mind, she’s like Virginia but minus the Virginia-ness, it’s great." Came the energetic voice of an unknown state who stood in front the personification of New York, and the state they had met briefly before, Illinois. The new girl had shoulder-length blonde hair and blue eyes like America’s, with sun-kissed skin and quite open and warm-weather clothing.  
"You dudes are the nations right? I heard you were here, thought I would’ve like ran into you before but I’ve been upstairs." She laughed a little, not necessarily in humor, "Anyway, I’m California! It’s cool to meet you dudes." She comported herself in a way that was very similar to that of her dad. The nations gave their greetings.  
New York stepped forward, "We didn’t really come here tuh chat, we came tuh steal Romano." He pointed at the nation, whose face looked less than shocked.  
"No, fuck off you stupid loud bastards, I don’t want anything to do with you." Romano responded bitingly.  
"You say that, but you don’t realize you don’t have a choice." Illinois smiled.  
California grabbed Romano by the arm and pulled him up.  
"If you’re not going to come willingly, I’m going to have to like carry you! We’re gonna get our Italian food." She said, pulling him a little towards the doorway. Romano just sighed, knowing he couldn’t fight against the girl if he tried (not that he actually wanted to.)  
"Fine." He capitulated, grouchily.  
"Ve~ Can I help?" Italy said, jumping up.  
"Of course, the more Italians the better!" Illinois exclaimed.  
"You like foreign food then, oui? ‘Ow about a French chef aussi?" France winked to New York, the boy blushing in response.  
"While you guys are here, we’re gonna make the most of you and get you to cook some fancy food, but right now is Italian time." Illinois casually stated.  
"Like, I’ve always wanted to try some German food," California voiced absent-mindedly.  
"Really?" Germany asked, a little surprised by the exuberant girl’s curiosity about his culture.  
"Yeah, oh, yeah but right now is about catching up with Romano." California averred.  
"And pasta." New York amended her comment.  
"And pasta!" Italy repeated.  
"To the kitchen!" California commanded, New York, Illinois and Italy sprinting out the room, while California followed a little less quickly, dragging Romano by the hand, narrowly escaping running into Pennsylvania on their way to the kitchen.  
"Watch it idiots!" She cried.  
"Sorry!" California responded.

——————————

The nations from that point had gradually filed out of the lounge area in search of certain states to talk with. England had been the first to go, wanting to talk with Virginia, her being the ‘first colony’. France had left afterwards, hoping to meet some of the other states that he had claimed ownership over back in the day, his conversation with Nebraska and the Dakota twins filling him with excitement. Spain had followed him out the room with hopes of finding Florida again (even though something told him that maybe he shouldn’t interfere with whatever the kid was doing) or of meeting some other nice states.  
Hawaii had ran in the room wanting to play with Japan; Alaska being busy with "planning" and California being preoccupied with the two Italians in the kitchen. The Japanese man at first had been a little apprehensive, but he was soon dragged out of the room by the (unusually) strong child. Outside, she had made him a flower crown using the dandelions growing in a corner of the flower garden.

Pennsylvania had heard from Virginia that the nations were congregated in the little open living room area near the guest rooms, and so she headed over there, almost getting bowled over again by the hyperactive Hawaii tugging Japan outside. Upon entering the open area, she instantly noticed that the unawesome old man China was there. Today really wasn’t her day was it? After she had brought him over to the house from the hotel, Pennsylvania had done a therapeutic workout, and then changed into some military-esque pants and a tank top that displayed her awesome muscles very well (she had to impress the nations after all). And while China being in the room made her instantly want to leave, Germany was there and he was the nation she wanted to talk with. China would just have to endure her awesomeness.  
"Yo, I came to speak with you," she said pointing at Germany.  
"Pennsylvania, ja?" Germany said.  
She nodded, leaning comfortably against the door frame, "That would be me, call me Penny though, shorter to say and easier to spell. Anyway, you’re Prussia’s brother yeah? I mean I already know you are but that’s not the point." She coughed a little awkwardly,  
"I know he’s probably never said anything about me, or doesn’t even remember me, I mean I was just the little girl on the training ground holding a bayonet and wearing boys clothing. But he still seemed like a really awesome guy," she chuckled a bit to herself, remembering how energetic and enthusiastic Prussia was. He certainly had made her efforts to become a revolutionary a lot more entertaining.  
"Mein bruder told me a little from vhen he vent to train America for his var. He never mentioned you though." Germany thought back to what he could remember from back then. He hadn’t been around until 1871, (that he remembered) and so talk of the American revolution had died down significantly.

Pennsylvania took a deep breath, she wasn’t one to show emotions, or at least those heavy important emotions that are difficult to put into words, but this was an opportunity she wasn’t going to miss.  
"When you talk to him next can you just... thank him for me. He really changed my life, made me a lot more confident in myself," She beamed, "And taught me that I should kick the unawesome people in the ass." Penny couldn’t help but glance at China.  
"You act very zimilarly to mein bruder." Germany commented, the girl’s outgoing personality, her propensity to use the word awesome, she even resembled Prussia a bit, her eyes being the same color.  
"I’ll take that as a compliment." She smiled a very American smile.

"Am I interrupting something?" Nevada asked, not able to pass through the doorway due to Pennsylvania’s obstruction.  
"Depends," she replied, not moving out of the way.  
"On what?" Nevada raised an eyebrow, complementing his unamused expression.  
"How much of an asshole you’re gonna be." Pennsylvania smirked a bit at her own statement.  
Nevada sighed, "Look I need to talk with China, so if you don’t mind—"  
"Oh yeah, go ahead," Penny jumped out of the doorway, happily gesturing her hand to show that he had a free path to take the nation out of the room.  
Nevada was a little surprised by his sister’s willingness, "Oh, yes. Thanks."  
"Why do you need me, aru~" China asked, sounding a little annoyed by the interaction between the two states.  
"I assume you don’t want to stay here longer than necessary, and I’m trying to gather information. Your help is required." Nevada asserted firmly.  
"You are right, aru~ I don’t want to stay here any longer than I have to." The Chinese man commented, standing up and following Nevada out of the room.

"Hmm, so Nevada’s investigating huh? That’s interesting." Pennsylvania thought aloud once the two had fully exited the room.  
"Vhy is zhat interesting?" Germany asked, himself a bit curious.  
"Well, Nev doesn’t get too involved in drama around the house unless there’s some mystery or conspiracy going on. Something’s happening." Is all Pennsylvania replied as she sat down on one of the now empty couches.  
"Vhat is going on?" Germany asked, sounding a little annoyed at the revelation.  
"I don’t know. Don’t know what’s keeping you here. But I don’t do investigations, I do fighting so I’ll just stick around to the end to find out." She told casually.

"Fighting?" Germany repeated, implying that he wanted her to elaborate.  
"Oh yeah, I mean I’ve fought in every war this union’s ever been a part of. Dad let me fight in the Revolution and some of the earlier wars, it took a bit of convincing. I fought in both World Wars too, the first I managed to fake my identity and enter without Dad knowing, climbed through the rankings quickly because unlike all those other guys I had hundreds of years of training. Pops was pissed when he found out but I still fought in World War II, kicked some serious Nazi ass." She paused, eyes wide open when she realized, "O-oops, sorry." She said, feeling very awkward.  
"Nein, it’s fine. It was war." Germany brushed off her statement, such statements had been common after the war; America had said similar things as well.  
"Yeah, it was one hell of a war, and not it the good way." She said, standing, "I got things to do, and by that I mean I’m gonna go for another run which would only really be one thing, but whatever. It was nice meeting you— re-meeting you Germany."   
"It vas nice meeting you asvell." Germany stated.  
"Cool, und vergessen Sie nicht, Preußen zu sagen, dass ich Hallo gesagt habe." She said, walking out the room, grinning smugly.

—————————— 

"When you were at the hotel or before then, did you see anything suspicious?" Nevada asking this to China seemed incredibly strange to the boy. After all, he was the one who had convinced them to shut down the hotel, but at the time he had been much too focused on talking to the woman at the desk than he was on noticing any oddities. In a way, this interrogation was much like a minefield, not wanting to give himself away but still wanting information.  
"Nothing strange but man knocking on my door telling me to leave," China answered, expressionless.  
"Are you positive?" Nevada pushed.  
"I was in my room aru~, there wasn’t much to notice." He answered, definitively.

Nevada thought a moment, "What about at the world meeting yesterday?" He asked, the question itself a little broad.  
"Shì, those small states that were crying." China answered exactly how Nevada thought he would. Time to narrow things down.  
"Did anything besides the girls coming into the meeting happen? Any strange occurrences?" He attempted to word a proper question, although there wasn’t much to go off of.  
"No, unless you count America running out of the room." Was the reply, and no, he didn’t consider that a strange occurrence.

"Alright how about this," he thought up a satisfactory question, this had to bring up some lead, surely, "After you were thrown out of the hotel, did you overhear anything or see anything?" He was practically prodding a land mine now, if China had seen him things could become rather inconvenient for the investigation.  
"Hmm, I saw some little person at a distance, aru~. She looked like she was spying," The Chinese man recalled. In Nevada’s head, it felt like there were bells going off.  
"You what?" He asked surprised.  
"She didn’t say anything, but when I looked at her, she smiled very creepy, aru~." Nevada stood, that was a lead he could work with.

"Thank you for your time and cooperation sir." He commented, very proud with how the interrogation had worked out, "I also hear you have a thing for money yes? Well if that’s the case if you ever feel like it you should come visit me in Las Vegas. We love foreign company."  
Nevada left the room, and as soon as he had stepped through the door, he couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling that he was being watched.

—————————— 

Spain made his way to the kitchen, his attempt to find and talk with Florida being unsuccessful. He was mulling over his distressed feelings after their conversation a little while prior.  
He knew that he shouldn’t be upset, that the state had been taken by America, lost through that war and that he should have no attachment to the child, but that old coloniser and parental intent still lingered. Was he in the right to feel upset?

A state who had not been paying attention to where he was going ran into the nation who had not being paying attention to where he was going, not hard enough to fall to the ground but still hard enough to reel back in shock.  
When the two had properly stabilized themselves, the state spoke,  
"Whoops sorry Florid—" he cut himself off. This wasn’t Florida, it was a man who he hadn’t met that looked similar to his older brother, but certainly had unique features about him, "Shit you’re not Florida, sorry... whoever you are," his mind put a few pieces together, "Spain, you’re totally Spain. Ok I got it, cool."

Spain took a good look at the boy he had ran into. He was not very tall or short, he was in that middle range that a lot of teenagers found themselves in. He had blue eyes, but not exactly the same shade as America’s, and blond hair tied into a ponytail, also not exactly the same shade as America’s. The clothes he wore were large for him and awfully patriotic, his shirt bearing red stripes and stars.  
"Si, I am Spain," he really had to introduce himself a lot today, "And what is your name?"  
"I’m Idaho, don’t joke about it I’ve heard them all." He remarked humorously, "So how have things been going? It’s not exactly a five star hotel here but I think it’s still good."  
"It has been an interesting experience. A lot of the states remind me of America." Spain told, the boy himself bouncing and talking much like his father.  
"Except for Florida, he looks like you," Idaho commented, unaware of the nation’s strained feelings.  
"Yes, I met him. He doesn’t exactly want a lot to do with me." Spain replied, sounding a little upset. Idaho studied his expression and body language, he was never one for reading people’s emotions but he didn’t want the conversation to grow to awkward.  
"I’m sure he didn’t say that or mean that. Listen, Emilio’s really weird okay, he doesn’t act like a normal person and he does stupid crazy things sometimes. Sometimes he states what he feels directly, and other times he throws words around that don’t actually fucking mean anything. So don’t get too upset if that kid said he didn’t want to have anything to do with you, which I’m sure you misinterpreted by the way. Just keep being persistent, it’ll be fine." Idaho hoped that his words had helped a little, and seeing the Spaniard’s face grow a little less upset, he assumed they had.  
"Muchas gracias, I will do that."

"Fantastic, I’ve got to run now if I want to avoid Montana’s wrath!"

—————————— 

America sat at his desk with his face buried in his hands. The burdens of the day kept piling up, and all he wanted was this nightmare of a day to be over and done with. He had wanted to introduce some of the nations to the states, maybe spend time with some of his kids and not have to worry about dramas and the outside world, but here he was in his office dealing with another few crises.

First, the security cameras throughout the house had been malfunctioning, which if that was related to the nation’s visit would be unnerving, and if it weren’t connected would be a couple hundred dollars to repair. From what he could tell, none of the important cameras had been touched, so at least that was alright.  
The second issue, the people who owned the airport the nations would be using to get home rung him and told that hey had been receiving threats, or more specifically had rung the FBI who then had rung him, which was an incredibly sketchy happening. He had managed to ameliorate their concerns and assure them that nothing would go wrong, allowing the meeting to still be held. Obviously this was connected with the nation’s hotel being closed, but he had no idea why and honestly he was far too exhausted to even begin wondering. Maybe he shouldn’t have stayed up playing video games last night.

Now, that optimistic and youthful side to his mind hoped that everything was going to be fine, that there was nothing bad happening and that this was all a set of massive coincidences. However the realistic side of his mind was telling him that he should be taking this more seriously than he was.  
America really didn’t want the nations to see him be incompetent at the moment. At the recent reveal of the states and the fact that America was a father, he realized that now he would have to face a whole new type of judgment from the nations. There was a new lens for the nations to look through and glare at him with. Every action and sentence he said could now be looked at under the critical eye of the nations who had raised children or their siblings. America didn’t necessarily care about what the other nations felt or said about him, it was more that when they did feel or say something about him it was another issue he had to deal with, another thing to hide under the Hollywood smiles and sunshine-bright eyes.

Now, with the nations under the roof with all of the states, if things continued to go wrong the nations would throw it at him, blame him for it and he really didn’t want to have to deal with that.

God he wished he could get some more sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don’t let quarantine make you suffer the same fate as Canada’s tea.  
> I always get really scared to write about Germany, I don’t know why. Like, I always struggle so much to get into character to write for him and I’m worried it’s going to look stupid.
> 
> *Language things*
> 
> • "Quelle une fille intéressante." - What an interesting girl.  
> • "mein bruder" - my brother  
> • "und vergessen Sie nicht, Preußen zu sagen, dass ich Hallo gesagt habe" - And dont forget to tell Prussia I said hi.  
> • "Muchas gracias" - Thank you very much
> 
> Did y’all know that Pennsylvanian German was a thing? Because I didn’t.


	12. Happy Bonding

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mostly happy times and conversations except for Idaho, may he Rest In Peace.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The potato state is coming back, you guys excited? He’s a chaotic moron and I love him.  
> Also magic.

America loved and cherished every single one of his kids. Through every problem, war, and tear shed, he has always been there for them, however, with fifty kids plus a life of your own, it certainly was not easy. That being said, America does have a sixth sense; a, for lack of a better term, parental sense. Alfred was never sure if it’s because he’s a parent or because he’s a nation or some unorthodox combination of the two, but he's always been able to detect when his children will need him. What exactly do I mean by that? Let me tell you.

Let’s travel back to March 5, 1770, that event that’s been mentioned many times prior: The Boston Massacre. It was two days before that occurred when America found himself in Boston with Massachusetts. Ben was delighted by the surprise visit from his father, but America couldn’t shake the ever-present sense of dread looming at every moment. Something in him screamed that he needed to be there, and two days later when those gunshots sounded, and his son fell into a pool of his own blood, in pain, America realized what had been the cause of that dread.  
That was the first instance where America had experienced that need to be around his children to be able to help and comfort them, and it was definitely not the last.

The civil war had been the worst nightmare of his life. His kids had been ripping each other to pieces, burning the land, fighting over basic human rights. They each had suffered their own pains, and Alfred had wanted to be there for them, all of them, but he couldn’t. The war had brought him so much physical pain that he couldn’t even make it to the state to comfort his kids. Without his help or guidance, they continued hurting each other, hurting him, and all he could do was sit back and feel the sorrow of the people as they fought.  
That sense of his had been going off in his mind like a siren every second of every day, screaming at him to do something, but he just couldn’t. When the war finally ended, he mustered up the strength to go and see them all, embrace them all and welcome the southern states back to the union. That day Georgia had hugged him tighter than she ever had before, America’s pain subsided.

The nightmare of his kids in pain never ended, would never end. The bombing of Pearl Harbor had ignited within America the fiercest burning fire he had ever felt. He had docked at Hawaii on December 1st, that instinct raging wild and with World War II growing more violent every day across the pond, America feared the worst. On December 7th, the worst came. Hawaii had been, physically, only about two or three and maybe that was why it seemed so cruel to him. America knew that Japan did not know of the child’s existence, and maybe if he had, America would’ve destroyed more than two cities.  
September 9, 2001, was when America stepped foot in New York City, that same instinct calling him there like a siren’s call. The boy had seemed confused but enjoyed spending time with his pops, it wasn’t everyday the man showed up in his city after all and he wasn’t going to let the opportunity to impress him go. Two days later, when the first plane crashed, New York fell to the ground in an overwhelming amount of pain he hadn’t fell in centuries. He was coughing up blood and crying profusely, his Dad next to him on the ground also bleeding and in pain but much more concerned about his child’s wellbeing. With the second plane crash New York had passed out, and America was partly grateful that he hadn’t had to bear the pain conscious. 9/11 left New York with a permanent scar, and his left eye had never healed. The boy had never quite moved on from he horrid event, and had grown his hair to cover his eye so he didn’t have to be constantly reminded of the tragedy whenever he looked at himself.

Needless to say, the pain and suffering of the American people had hurt Alfred beyond belief, but the man had always been more concerned about the wellbeing of his kids. Whenever he felt a disaster approach, he would find his way to that state and would be there to comfort them every step of the way.

Because that’s what a hero does.

——————————

Hawaii was fervently putting together a flower crown for her big sister Maine, who had joined her and Japan outside. Maine wanted to ask her baby sister a couple of simple questions, but the child had refused to answer anything until she had been donned with a glorious flower crown, and Maine wasn’t going to complain.  
Japan had been garlanded with two flower crowns, one made of dandelions and the other of butterweed. At first, he had felt apprehensive, but quickly found the little girl’s rambling and excited behavior to be comforting. He was incredibly glad that Hawaii had forgiven his actions, not that she had been angry but Japan could tell there had been a fear hanging over her. Now that she had seen that the man wasn’t the scary doom-bringer that she envisioned him to be, Hawaii was wholeheartedly jumping at every opportunity they had to spend time together.  
"And... done!" Hawaii said, placing the crown on Maine. Hawaii sat back and admired her exemplary work shining atop her sister’s head, it was one of her greatest crowns to date even though she thought that of them all. Although personally, Hawaii preferred the crowns she made with Hawaiian flowers like the Hawaiian Hibiscus over these garden weeds, but a crown made of dandelions was still pretty and better for the garden. Hawaii gave Maine her mirror that she brought with her whenever she knew that flower crowns were guaranteed to be made.  
"It’s gorgeous, thanks!" Maine opined, in awe at the crown.  
"I know!" Hawaii averred very pleased and proud.

Japan smiled slightly at the interaction.  
"There was something you wanted to ask?" Japan reminded the girl, Maine’s eyes widening in surprise.  
"Oh yeah there was, and I’m free to ask now I have a wonderful crown, right Lily?" Maine asked, a little abashed that she had forgotten the reason she was looking for the girl.  
"Ask away!" Hawaii assented.  
"Excellent. Hawaii, you were hanging out with Alaska earlier right?" Maine asked, her face not looking as serious as her words sounded.  
"Sure was," Hawaii replied, not noticing the gravity of the conversation.  
"Was she acting weird? Was she doing anything strange?" Maine queried.  
"Super weird! She kept doing strange stuff all morning, and then she ran away from me to go spend time with Russia." Hawaii complained, still a little upset by her sister abandoning her.  
"Russia." Maine stated. It didn’t feel like as much of a surprise than she would’ve imagined.  
"Yeah, apparently she’s really attached to him already. She wants him to stay forever." Hawaii commented innocently, still not quite grasping the fact she should be taking this more seriously.  
"By ‘forever’ you mean...?"  
"She wants to trick him and dad into getting married." And just like that, the pieces fell together in Maine’s mind. She still needed confirmation however.  
"Kiki, I’d like another flower crown if that’s okay with you." Maine said with a smile. The little girl stood and her eyes sparkled.  
"Okay! I need more flowers though!" And she raced off to collect them.

"You were with the nations earlier, did Alaska show any of these signs?" Maine asked, sounding very polite and the smile not leaving her face.  
"Werr, when Russia was in the garden, Araska rushed to go get him. I didn’t see more than that." Japan thought back, he hadn’t really seen Alaska and Russia interact much, but then he also hadn’t seen much of Russia or Alaska at all. Maine just sat in thought.  
"You should terr America." Japan stated. It seemed like this situation should be dealt with as soon as possible to avoid any other issues.  
"He’s so stressed right now, I don’t want to say anything unless I’m sure. I trust Hawaii but she’s very little and misinterprets a lot of things. When I’m sure, I’ll tell him." Maine stated. If this was all true, telling her dad was the smartest option, get everything sorted out quickly and quietly, but if it wasn’t true and she was throwing Alaska under the bus for no good reason, making her dad more stressed and placing her sister in a negative spotlight was the opposite of what she wanted.  
"Does this mean that Araska shut down the hoter?" Japan asked.  
"No, that was Nevada." Maine said plainly. Japan was going to ask a follow up question but,  
"I got the flowers!" Hawaii exclaimed, dropping the butterweed onto the ground in front of her. Maine smiled, she could continue her investigating later, right now she wanted another flower crown.

——————————

Virginia wasn’t known for smiling openly and bonding with people unless it was Christmas or she was incredibly intoxicated. And yet, even though right now neither circumstances applied, she still found herself happily conversing England in the living room. It was to be expected one would suppose, Virginia was the first colony even though she isn’t the oldest of the states, and not only did the two look alike physically (of course Virginia had more feminine aspects to her) but they also shared many interests. Such as magic.

"You can see them too‽" England was astounded, he had not expected that any of the states could see magical creatures, granted he hadn’t thought about it either.  
"You’d be surprised," Virginia said, moving one of the fairies to her shoulder instead of her hand so she could continue flipping through the pages of her book, "There’s a lot more magic in this house than one would think."  
"Other states can see them too?" Arthur wondered, if some of the states could see the creatures why did America still deny their existence?  
"Oh yes, I can, New York can, Delaware can, Massachusetts can as well although he doesn’t want anything to do with magic, I think Jersey can too but I’ve never asked her. Louisiana practices voodoo but I’m not sure if that translates into seeing creatures or not. Hawaii can see them, Kansas can, Ohio, Wisconsin, Arkansas, Nevada, I suspect California as well but she denies it every time I ask. Oh, and Florida can see them but still thinks they aren’t real and that he’s just hallucinating." Virginia counted them on her fingers.

England’s mouth hung open. How could so many of the states possess those magical abilities, even those states where he had hardly any influence over like Kansas and Florida.  
"If you’d like, I can show you our magic chamber and archives." Virginia suggested, it’s been a while since she’s had someone new to introduce to the chamber. She very rarely took her siblings down there, it was usually only her and New York. Due to the two of them wearing the robes for their spells around the house occasionally in the past, her siblings had nicknamed the room the angst chamber, and from that point on the two made an effort to avoid discussing magic outside of the room.  
"What? The magic chamber?" England asked.  
"Yes it’s in the basement, you can only really get there if you know the secret entrances however." Virginia stated. There were hidden entrances all throughout the house, but the basement was a labyrinth designed to conceal the way, so it was best to not enter without a guide.  
"How... how is it possible for all those states to know magic? Where did they get it from?" England was asking himself more than he was asking Virginia, yet she answered anyway after a deep breath.

"I shouldn’t say this," she began in a hushed voice, "I’m not certain, but most of the states reckon Dad can do magic to some degree, but after the Salem Witch Trials he stopped completely. He gets uncomfortable when you ask him though. You didn’t hear this from me." She finished. She hadn’t exactly told the truth, she knew about this for sure. Her dad had told her a long time ago, but it was better left interpreted as simply a myth.  
Another screw fell loose in England’s mind. Not only was there magic rampant in this house, but America himself maybe possessed the ability too. Why had he not known about this? The witch trials took place decades after he had declared his brotherhood with the then-colony.  
"Once again, would you like to go to the Magic chamber, I can assure you that it’s much quieter down there." Virginia suggested once more. England shook himself from his stupor.  
"That would be wonderful." England answered.

Virginia stood and walked over to the bookshelf by the far wall of the living room. She placed her book on the shelf with care, and then proceeded to pull out four other books. With a few mechanical sounds, the bookshelf opened and revealed a staircase leading down to the basement.  
"You may want to keep up because you will get lost down there by yourself." Virginia said, walking down the stairs. England’s mouth hung wide open.

——————————

"It’s been so long! We’ve missed you so much Romano!" California exclaimed, annoying the poor Italian who was just trying to survive the day and cook.  
"Get off me loud bastarda!" Maybe, just maybe Romano wasn’t as angry as he tried to appear in this situation.  
When Romano was over in America, Alfred hadn’t been too eager to bring him over to the DC house, but time took hold of him and soon it was just the easiest option. A few of the states had very quickly connected to Romano, and after a while of shoving them off and telling them to go to hell, the Italian finally learnt to accept it (and maybe he began to enjoy spending time with the states, not that he’d ever admit it.)  
He deemed some of the states far easier to spend time with than others, and he preferred the quieter and more simple states at first, but the three annoying idioti who were currently harassing him in the kitchen hadn’t let that stop them. Maybe it was his foreign appeal, or his exquisite cooking, or his charming accent, but the three couldn’t leave him alone. As time progressed, Romano learnt that it was easier, and a lot less aggravating, to just let them follow and annoy him.

"I’m telling you, we should spend more time together! Ooh! Now that the nations like know about us I could come and visit you in Italy." California suggested, her arm on Romano’s shoulder, not giving him the person space he had sworn at her while requesting.  
"No, fuck off," Romano said, feigning as much anger as he could.  
"That would be so cool! Ve~ we can show you the country!" Italy offered.  
"I’ve always wanted tuh go tuh Italy, tuh all of Europe actually," New York voiced.  
"Yay! I’ll show you!" Italy was ecstatic.  
Italy, unlike most of the other nations, had felt no stress or negative feelings at all upon finding out about the states. The nation had been overjoyed by the idea of all the happy people living together that he could share his food and culture with, and these states didn’t disappoint in interest. Sure, not all of them were happy like he had thought, Virginia was grumpy most of the time and Massachusetts had thrown a knife, but Italy was sure that they would be friends.  
The three states in the kitchen had apparently become friends with his brother, which Italy knew from personal experience wasn’t the easiest thing in the world to do. And while Romano denied his attachment to the states, even Italy could see that Romano was lying as he certainly displayed some sort of protective instinct over them. I guess that’s something a lot of nations have built into them.

"Take me as well," Illinois put forth, "I can also take you to Chicago, oh and Springfield and Peoria," he suggested. Illinois was quite proud of his state, it may not be the biggest or the most populated, or as well known as it should be, but there were golden aspects to it. Besides, everyone knows about Chicago.  
"Are those cities in your state? I’ve heard of Chicago, ve~" See, everyone knows about Chicago.  
"Sure are! I’d love to show you around," Illinois reiterated.  
"California’s like way better, nothing comes close to the golden coast," California averred, Illinois gave her a pout.  
"Oh please, your people are way too loud and obnoxious," Illinois altercated.  
"Yeah but like, your people are too!" California dismissed with a wave of her hand.  
"California is known for it’s bein’ obnoxious," New York chimed in.  
"Shut it yankee, I can like name hundreds of things New York’s known for that aren’t good," California replied.

"Can you fuckheads shut up?" Romano grilled, genuinely annoyed by the altercation of the states.  
"Roma, that’s not very nice," Spain said, finding his way into the kitchen.  
"Oh, fucking great," Romano did his best to focus on the cooking and nothing else.  
"Ah, Spain! It’s great to properly meet you, I’m California!" California rushed forward to greet the Spaniard.  
"It’s nice to meet you," Spain addressed.  
"Wow, you look just like Florida! I mean he’s like shorter and his hair is messier, and he has freckles, and your cheeks are more defined, but like apart from that you two look very similar." California stated, viewing the nation before her and comparing him to her mental picture of her brother.  
"Ah, thank you..." Spain said, not quite sure how to respond to the girl’s rambling.  
"Actually I’ve been wonderin’, where is Emil? I usually see him lurkin’ around somewhere," New York commented, he hadn’t seen much of the state all day.  
"He was going to do something with a goose last I heard," Illinois stated, a little perturbed.  
"Nevermind, I don’t wanna know,"

"Spain, you should help us cook, you can make pasta right?" Illinois suggested.  
"Sí, I do," Spain confirmed.  
"Great the more company the better, right Italy?" Illinois proffered.  
"Ve~!"  
California shot up, a new idea formed in her head.  
"I’ll like go get Oregon and Washington! The whole Western coast will be here!" She shouted.  
"Maybe you could leave Liam alone he probably wouldn’t appreciate it— and she’s gone." Illinois said as California rushed out of the kitchen. New York just laughed.

——————————

Kansas was aimlessly wandering the halls of the house. While normally she’d be wandering with intent, in other words she’d be wandering with the hopes of deciding on what to do, today nothing was coming to mind.  
On top of this, she couldn’t help but shake the feeling that it was because of her failure to look after Alaska and Hawaii that now the nations were at the house. And while that in itself wasn’t a bad thing necessarily, the states were all aware of the stress that was now piled upon their father to perform up to the nations’ standards. America may have denied these stresses whenever he was asked this morning, but it was inherently obvious. Kansas knew that it really wasn’t her fault, her dad had said so too. After all Alaska liked to do things her own way and Hawaii was often dragged along with her, it was all just unfortunate timing that placed Kansas in that negative light, but still it had been her duty to keep and eye on the two children, and Kansas had blinked.

While wandering her eyes fell upon an unfamiliar face, or actually a familiar face on an unknown body, who was looking at some of the framed family photographs on the wall. The man was a nation, Kansas instantly made that connection, and given that his face was similar to that of Louisiana she could only assume this was France. That was exciting. Kansas has been in the dead center of the Louisiana Purchase, although she had never thought much about the Frenchman himself, just the impact he had on her state. Hopefully he wouldn’t be upset that her French speaking abilities had declined drastically after 2007.  
"Hi there sir, are you France?" She approached him, already knowing he was France, but it wasn’t exactly polite to assume such things.  
"Oui, et vous?" He asked in response, a flirtatious grin in his face.  
"I’m Kansas, but you can call me Abigail," she replied.  
"Enchanté Abigail. I do believe I ‘ave ‘eard of your state, where that movie Wizard of Oz took place, oui?" France asked playfully.  
And just like that, Kansas’ good mood flew out the window. Of course one of the nations would say such a thing, it’s the only reason her state is known outside of the union. Her face grew to display a state of displeasure, but she was determined to maintain the good manner.  
"Sir, I know that the movie took place in my state, and I dress like Dorothy, and the movie is a pride of my state, but please can you not reference it?" She asked through gritted teeth. Kansas didn’t hate the movie, she loved it really. She dressed like Dorothy all the time after it she had seen it all those years ago, and her father nicknamed her Toto after an incident at the theater one time, but whenever people talked about Kansas, or at least all of the times that she had overheard, it was always in reference to the movie. It became a little redundant at one point and it just aggravated her now.  
"Ah, I apologize. I did not mean to upset such a beautiful girl." France apologized.  
"No harm done," she smiled, her annoyance ameliorated. "How are you liking it here, have you met many of the states?" She asked, opening up a new conversation.  
"Oui, I ‘ave. I met the thirteen of Angleterre’s colonies and I met three lovely states earlier, Nebraska and the two Dakotas." France replied, perhaps standing a little too close to the girl than what’s socially accepted.  
"Nice, I heard Charlie and the twins talking earlier about spying on you. Guess they got caught," she laughed a little.  
"They weren’t exactly the most stealthy of spies," France commented, the three had given themselves away very quickly, and he hadn’t even been in a position to notice them by himself.  
"Well, they’re American teenagers, what do you expect?" Kansas stated, both the interlocutors giggling a little at the comment.

"Kansas!" Came the piercing, panicked scream of a state that Abby could easily determine was Idaho without looking. She turned to see the drama, and there was Idaho (who would have thought) closely followed by a very angry looking Montana. When Idaho made it to where Kansas was, he jumped behind her, letting her shield him.  
"What did you do?" She asked, the panic infesting her a little as she was placed in the middle of this drama.  
"I didn’t do anything!" He shouted fearfully.  
"The potato fucker called me a redneck," Montana stated, arms akimbo.  
"You were giving off that vibe I’m sorry," Idaho avouched.  
"Sam, now’s the time to shut your mouth," Kansas implored.  
"And keep it shut potato dick," Montana said, gripping her hips a little tighter.  
"That’s not very polite thing to say," France intervened with a smirk, entertained a little by the chaos before him.  
The brunette stiffened, not noticing until now the formal company present. She adjusted her position to be that of a more polite one and gently tapped her hair poof back into its correct place.

"Sorry yeah. Didn’t see you," she pathetically apologized. Montana rarely apologized simply because she never did anything or said anything she felt wasn’t justified.  
"That is quite alright, je suis France, enchanté," he said with a wink.  
"Cool, I’m Montana," she said with a little awkward wave.  
"I’m Idaho," said state introduced himself, stepping out from behind Kansas. Montana turned and glared at him and he cowered back.  
"Now, if you’ll excuse us, I have a potato to mash," Montana said readying herself to attack again.  
"What‽ Kansas!" Idaho turned to the girl, pleading with his fearful face for aid.  
"You brought this upon yourself," Kansas shrugged. Montana was known throughout the house as being the state that was very honest and forthright, she said what her mind thought, she acted on whatever she thought was right, and she punched a person hard in the face when that person needed to be set straight. Messing with her was a foolish feat, then again Idaho didn’t exactly have the sense to process such an idea.

"Why‽" Idaho protested as he ran away from the girls, Montana chasing after him again. Luckily for Idaho, he could run faster and maybe if he had the sense, he’d have used that to his advantage.  
"Ce girl is quite terrifying for ‘er size," France commented, amused at the states’ antics.  
"She’s only terrifying when she’s mad. She’s still not the most terrifying, that’s Texas," Kansas remarked. Texas was the tallest of all the states, taller than America even, and he wasn’t one to be messed with for he carried guns and the will to use them at all times.  
"Are those two always like that?" France inquired.  
"Nah, well yes and no I guess. They aren’t always fighting but their dynamic is always like that," she answered. "Alright well it was nice to meet you sir," Kansas said, extending her hand to formally shake goodbye. France took a delicate hold of the hand and gave it a gentle kiss.  
"It was a pleasure." He agreed.

Kansas gave him one final smile then went on her merry way. She hadn’t thought she’d find something to do with her time while wandering, but the conversation had filled her with ideas. She was going to chat with big brother Texas.

——————————

He wasn’t completely certain, but when America thought about who could have been the one to mess with the security cameras, based on history and ability he had an inkling that it had been Alaska. He wasn’t mad, at least outwardly, the day was weird after all and everyone’s nerves were spiked so he couldn’t blame the girl for wanting to know what was happening, he just wished that maybe she hadn’t broken the technology.

When America went to find his second youngest daughter, he was disquieted by he fact that she was happily conversing in the Russian’s room with the nation himself. There was no malice or ill will, which he was thankful for, but the Russian-looking child conversing with Russia set him a little on edge. Maybe America should have suspected it, given the alikeness of the two, Alaska was sure to bond with Russia sooner or later, but he simply hadn’t and it came as a shock.  
"Hey Niki, I need to talk with you about something," America said, making his presence in the room known of.  
Alaska’s eyes lit up. The two nations were in the room together, this was a fortuitous opportunity!  
"Yes dad?" the excitement shone in her voice. America smiled at the child’s happiness, he loved seeing her smile so genuinely as it was incredibly rare, but his face hardened again remembering his purpose.  
"Were you in my office earlier?" He asked lightly. Alaska’s face dimmed, and guilt became present. Maybe the opportunity wasn’t as great as she had first perceived it to be. She nodded slightly.  
"Were you messing with the security cameras?" America asked the second question, crossing his arms.  
"Sorry," was all Alaska answered, it provided a response to the question nonetheless.  
"Some of the cameras broke down, and that may not be related to you interfering with them, but either way you shouldn’t have been in the office when you know you’re not allowed." He lectured. The child looked at him with her large, sadness-filled eyes, and America found it hard to maintain his angry facade. He took a deep breath, "Stay out of the office when I’m not there, please,"  
"Yes daddy," she replied unhappily. America was ready to end this conversation. The child had clearly learnt her lesson and now he wasn’t feeling super great with himself.  
"Well, I’m... glad you two are bonding," he attempted to sound pleased at such a happening.  
"She very nice child. We are good friends," Russia responded, rolling his r’s as much as possible to make the child giggle, which she did abundantly.  
"I’m glad," he wasn’t exactly, "Anyway, I have some other work to do, so I should go do it. Also, there is a whole house and garden, you guys would probably like it out here more than you do in this tiny room," he suggested, leaving the room and heading back to his office.

He had a lot more things to think about now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What I write: Virginia had feminine aspects to her.  
> The lesbian demon in my soul: bOObs
> 
> For anyone wondering, in 2007 Kansas declared English its official language, that’s why Kansas is no longer able to speak French fluently.
> 
> Hawaii’s human name is Kamalei, and she has a lot of nicknames like Kami, Leia, Leila, Kiki and Lily.  
> And no, Kansas’ name is not Dorothy, sorry to disappoint.
> 
> *language things*
> 
> • "idioti" - plural for idiota. I’m sure you can figure out what that means.  
> • "Oui, et vous?" - yes, and you?  
> • "Enchanté" - I’m enchanted (that’s what’s you say when you meet someone)


	13. Reneging

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tensions grow and so do bonds.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like now we’re nearing the end of the rising action and heading towards the climax of the story. Like Alaska is pissed now y’all.

One of the most important aspects of the relationship between a parent and a child is ensuring the scale of power is tipped in a fair and just way. Naturally, the parent should have more power than the child, but the child should have enough power to tell the parent when they have done something wrong, and for the parent to apologize. If the scale is tipped unfairly in either direction, the relationship becomes unhappy and untrusting.  
America believed in justice and fairness, as I’m sure everyone is already aware of, and so his parenting was naturally so. However, a skill he had always had trouble learning is figuring out when he was in the wrong. Don’t misconstrue, when it was clear to him that he was in the wrong and that his children were in the right, Alfred had figured out how to apologize to them, and his children appreciated it every time. But he just wasn’t the best at picking up when he was wrong.

Which is why America learned to trust and encourage open communication. The states had grown up with the freedom of speech, and so most of them were already very vocal about what was on their mind. This did have certain flaws, such as maybe they had said some things that were best left unsaid (oops), but when it came to assisting Alfred’s parenting the open communication was warmly welcomed.  
America not only learnt when he was wrong, but could also begin to understand how to avoid those situations in the future: what made his children uncomfortable, what made them comfortable, where the line between experimenting and stepping out of your comfort zone, and being left completely in the blue was drawn. This open communication helped strengthen the bond between him and his kids, and both parties learnt more about the other the more open they were. It was a wonderful and trusting cycle that America was unbelievably grateful for, and that he would never take advantage of.

Needless to say, justice and balance are things that America cherished, and to maintain a healthy dosage of both in the house, he learnt the importance of communication and trust. The states were incredibly grateful that their father was willing to listen and learn about them, allowing them the freedom to be the greater party when they deserved it.

And that balance produced a certain harmony.

——————————

When Maine made her way inside, the two flower crowns Hawaii made her resting proudly upon her head, her eyes fell upon her brother Nevada who was seemingly wandering the halls in deep thought. As she approached him, he noticed her presence and immediately made himself more proper for discussion.  
"So, I see you talked to Hawaii," he stated, admiring the gorgeous flower crowns, not jealous of course.  
"Yes, and I’m now ready to claim my kingdom as flower queen," Maine said, standing straighter and more royally.  
"You did ask her about—"  
"Yes I did, calm down," Maine cut off. She took the second of hushed conversation to put her observational skills to use.  
Maine was often one of the states who found herself in the corner of a busy room; whenever there were large crowds, she would always position herself towards the boundary, much like the positioning of her state. Because of this self-seclusion, Lillian had become exceedingly good at picking up on social clues and her surroundings. By the time she was ten, she could easily keep track of every time someone entered or exited a room, when someone was uncomfortable in conversation, and how people with certain personalities would display their feelings. Now, she used these skills of hers almost unwittingly.  
As she studied her brother, she noticed a slight discomfort or disquietude about him. Normally, he would be confident and calm, and when something was wrong, he had mastered the art of disguising it, although this never fooled Maine, not that she was necessarily close to her younger brother.

"I am perfectly calm, as always," Nevada avouched, giving his hair a playful flick. Maine just raised an eyebrow and stared at him.  
"From what Hawaii tells me, apparently she wants Russia to marry Dad, and to stay here forever," Maine told.  
"What‽" Nevada cried aloud. Noticing his volume and informality, he calmed himself. "That is... a little shocking."  
"Clearly," Maine smiled smugly at her little brother’s dramatic outburst of emotion, "Did you find out anything from China?" She asked.  
"Nothing of that magnitude, but I do believe that Alaska has been spying on me," he uttered, his volume enfeebled.  
"What makes you say that?" Maine queried, taking note of how her brother had shrunken in on himself a little, clearly afraid.  
"China said he saw someone in the shadows watching the scene at the hotel, I also noticed some shadow or movement after I exited the room. It’s possible the two could be unrelated but I highly doubt it," Nevada recounted. The boy himself wasn’t as observant as Maine, but he was much better at fitting puzzle pieces together. She was temporarily startled by the fact that the two actually made a good team, they had never really partnered up for anything before.  
"Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to have this conversation in the hallway then," Maine commented, realizing their situation.  
"Well, if she is spying on us, it’s not like we’re saying anything she doesn’t know!" Nevada laughed timidly.

None of the states were necessarily cowardly, the echelons of bravery varied but there was a standard. Alaska wasn’t a state that was feared among the household, until she became mad. She knew the ways and weaknesses of all her siblings, and interfering with her plans was basically a death sentence. Nevada had never gotten on the bad side of her before, but had heard from those states who had that she became a certain type of terrifying that stuck with you forever. He was already superstitious, he didn’t need anymore anxiety.  
"I suppose you’re right," Maine agreed with the comment, "Well, how about you don’t worry about this from now on, I’ll keep an eye on everything and will tell Dad if the situation exacerbates."  
Nevada sighed. Stepping down as a lead detective for a conspiracy seemed deigning, but there were always bigger conspiracies to investigate, and right now he wanted to save his own skin.  
"Let me know what happens, I want to be in on the secrets," he requested, Maine nodding in return.

As the two parted in the hallway, Nevada could not shake off the feeling of eyes tracing his movements. He paused and turned back to look at her sister, who turned the corner in the hall. The feeling of being watched did not ameliorate.  
"Back to work I guess," he said, adjusting his suit and trying to convince himself that he felt nothing.

——————————

At some point in the kitchen, New York had put on some Italian music he had on his phone as a sort of joke for the situation, but now, five songs in, Italy and New York were singing along, while Romano, Spain and Illinois worked on the cooking.  
"Hehe why do you have so much Italian music?" Italy asked while dancing.  
New York took a second to laugh at Italy’s ridiculous moves, "I like all different sorts of music, and besides dere’s not exactly a language barriuh. La tua musica è vivace!" Italy smiled at the use of his own language.  
"Hey, why don’t you bastards help out?" Romano asked, aggravated by the two’s lack of aid.  
"Come on fratello, we’re having fun," Italy said.

"Hey guys! I’m back, look who I brought with me!" California exclaimed, bursting through the doorway gripping Oregon tightly by the wrist and Washington standing idly beside her.  
"Ve~ more Americas!" Italy said excitedly.  
"You’re just in time to help," Illinois spoke.  
"I’d rather not," Oregon denied, pulling his wrist free from California’s grasp.  
"You can’t like go yet bro, you have to say hi!" California gave him a shove towards the kitchen.  
"Fine. Hi. Okay may I go now?" Oregon asked.  
"Be a little nicer," Washington urged, also pushing him towards the kitchen, but a little more politely.  
Oregon sighed, "Hi," he emphasized, "I’m Oregon, nice to meet you. Is that good?" They asked, looking at California pleadingly.  
"That was great, now you have to help!" She stated. Oregon groaned.  
"I’m Washington," the blonde girl introduced herself much more gently, with a wave.  
"It’s nice to meet you two," Spain replied.  
"Washington and Oregon like make up the rest of the West coast! We’re really close!" California claimed, grabbing Oregon’s wrist again as he attempted to escape out of the room.  
"Speak for yourself," he said dejectedly.

"Ve~ you should help us with the cooking!" Italy reiterated one of Illinois’ previous statements.  
"Why don’t you help?" Romano carped at his brother.   
"Oh, no thanks. I don’t know how to cook Italian food," Washington declined the younger Italian’s offer bluntly.  
"Can confirm," Illinois chimed in.  
"Oregon can help out though," Washington suggested, giving her older sibling a slightly harder shove than before.  
"I’d rather not share a kitchen with California, sorry." They said sharply.  
"We can stay though, if you want," Washington said, glancing at Oregon who looked very displeased with her suggestion. "Or I can stay, if you want."  
"That would be nice ve~" Italy stated.  
"The more company the better," Spain added. California squealed excitedly, guiding Washington to a seat. The girl sat, used to her older sister’s excitable and vivacious nature.  
"It was good to meet you, I guess," Oregon muttered, already stepping towards the doorway.  
"See you later! The three of us should totally like watch a movie together later!" California suggested loudly.  
Oregon groaned once more.

——————————

France had been wandering the halls. After his brief interaction with Kansas and the two states who were fighting, Idaho and Montana, he had become exuberant at the idea of meeting the other states as they partook in their daily lives. There was something about the difference between a formal meeting and a chance encounter that really struck him.

As he passed through one of the West hallways on the other side of the nations’ rooms, he overheard an argument and decided to peak through the slightly parted door. Inside sat three states: the first, a girl with light pink and long hair, the second another girl who wore her brunette hair in a pony tail (for some reason, France found it particularly hard to focus on her), and a boy with noticeably purple eyes and snow-white hair.  
"Don’t lie to yourself beehive, we both know my state is superior," the snowy haired boy claimed, waving his hand meaninglessly in the air.  
"You know shit if you think that’s fact," the rosy haired girl responded.  
"And what’s going on ‘ere?" France stepped into the room, revealing himself to the three surprised states.  
The white haired boy smiled after the shock of the intrusion wore off, "You see, my little sister here likes to think that her state is a superior ski state, when in reality my state is the superior," he claimed proudly.  
"And my brother here chooses to believe these things because it makes him feel better about his inferiority," the light pink haired girl bit back. The brunette stared at the two in a silent discontent.  
"And who are you two?" France asked slyly, his attitude perfectly matching the competitive vibe in the room.  
"I’m Utah, the best ski destination," the pink haired girl told.  
"I’m Colorado, the actual best ski destination," the white haired boy told, dismissing his sister’s claims.   
"I’m Wyoming—" the brunette started.  
"Have you ever been to either of our states?" Utah asked, cutting off Wyoming as per usual.  
"Not that I can recall," France thought back. He may have traveled through them when the Louisiana Territory was under his jurisdiction, but the nation had no clue as to where the border lines had been drawn up after the territory had been sold.  
"Bummer. You’re a nation though right? I should convince Dad to schedule a meeting in Denver," Colorado commented, thinking how exciting it would be to display his homeland to the nations of the world.  
"Did I not introduce myself? I am France, it is nice to meet you." The nation said with a wink and a smile.  
"France huh. The twins were talking about you earlier." Utah recounted.  
"So was Nebraska—"  
"So you’re the Louisiana man," Colorado remarked, cutting off Wyoming as per usual, "I think once upon a time my state belonged to you. See beehive, this guy knows who’s state is superior," he commented, returning the conversation to the previous topic of superiority.  
"Oh what bullshit," Utah laughed at her brother’s farcical accumulation of evidence.  
"I was also part of the—"  
"No, listen," Colorado started, also laughing at his ridiculous claims, cutting off Wyoming as per usual, "France tell her I’m superior."  
"He won’t say something that’s not true," Utah said as if she had known France her entire life.

"Hm well I can’t disagree with such a pretty young lady," France sided with Utah, much to Colorado’s cheery dismay.  
"What‽ How could you do this, I thought I knew you," Colorado said, overdramatizing his words and actions as much as possible to add to the humor of the conversation.  
France laughed along with the other two states. It was surprising how quickly they had involved him in conversation, but he found he quite enjoyed the company of these states. They were loud as were the other states, but their loudness provided a faint comfort and joy. The conversation itself could be taken seriously by another, but these kids seemed to make their rivalry lighthearted, and it was rejuvenating.

After a minute or so the laughter died down and the two states fixed themselves for a proper continuation of conversation. Utah placed her hand forcefully on Wyoming’s back.  
"Liv you should introduce yourself," Utah suggested, unknowingly upsetting the girl more than she already was.  
"I already did—"  
"Beehive leave her alone. If she doesn’t want to introduce herself then don’t push her," Colorado said gently, cutting off Wyoming as per usual. The state just sighed jadedly.  
"What are you doing here France, in this room I mean?" Utah asked, turning her attention to the new face in the room.  
"Well I over’eard your conversation, and decided to introduce myself," France explained his actions, that classic french tone in his voice.  
"I didn’t realize we were being loud," Colorado voiced. He hadn’t really been paying too much attention to the environment, he had simply been reveling in the rhapsodic altercation.  
"Ah you were not so bad. The ‘alls are just quiet over this side of the ‘ouse." France responded.  
"It’s not that—"  
"I know right," Utah agreed, cutting off Wyoming as per usual, "There’s never any states over this side of the house. The only real noise you hear over here is either from above or below, and it’s not even that bad." The first floor West side of the house was much quieter than the East excluding the living room and games room which was always loud, even when there was nobody inside the building. Although there were occasional outbursts of noise, either from the states whose rooms were on the second floor above them, or from what was deemed the ‘Voodoo Room’ in the basement below where now and then Louisiana went about her day. Apart from that, the West side was peaceful.  
"Well it is good our rooms are ‘ere then," France commented.  
"The guest rooms were—"  
"Damn straight," Utah agreed, cutting off Wyoming as per usual. 

——————————

Texas had ran into China in the hallway after trying to avoid having a discussion with Kansas, (he found the girl to be rather dull), and decided to make himself useful for once. On any other day, the man wouldn’t feel the need to formally deal with foreign nations, opting instead to act aloof and uncaring in order to ward them off, but today, with the knowledge of America’s stress and the buzz of anxiety circulating the house due to the unknown circumstances of the hotel’s closure, Texas took a deep breath and offered to direct the nation to the kitchen (he was pretty sure he got lost).  
Texas didn’t dislike foreigners, in fact he liked to think of himself as welcoming sometimes, it’s just that he hadn’t exactly had the most enjoyable start in life. His first few memories were that of war, trying to gain his independence from Mexico. After the war had ended, he had tried his best to run a country, but promptly failed and showed up on America’s doorstep one day in dire need of assistance. His addition to the union had produced an awkward tension around the house that had alleviated with time, but still made certain relations strange. After all the fighting and violence of his early life, Texas permanently carried guns on his person, and had developed a mental will to utilize them whenever a situation called for it. It had taken Texas half a century to associate America with an image of a parental figure in his life, and had taken another decade for him to call him his dad (Alfred may or may not have cried that day).

On the state’s arrival to the kitchen with China, he was met with the sight of Romano and two other nations (he assumed due to their unfamiliarity) and California, Illinois and New York playfully conversing and cooking what looked and smelt like Italian food, with Washington sitting at a table beside them, laughing at the energy. It was sickening. He felt the urge to immediately leave the room, but committed himself to his self-assigned duty.

"What in tarnation?" Texas uttered to himself.  
"Oh hey cowboy! What are you like doing here?" California asked enthusiastically upon noticing the state’s arrival.  
"I have a package to deliver," he said, his southern accent playing with his words. Texas grabbed hold of China, perhaps a little too tightly, and pulled him into the kitchen.  
"I don’t think I want to be here, aru~," China commented after observing the apparent energy of the room. Texas agreed with the old man’s words, but made no display of it.  
"Oh come on China! Stay and have pasta~," Italy encouraged.  
"Yeah, it tastes so good!" New York also encouraged.  
"Fine," China sighed and sat down at the table where Washington sat, on the opposite end however.  
"Tex, you should stay too, we’re collecting people," Illinois suggested, "or do you have some rootin’ tootin’ cowboy stuff to do." He remarked. Texas’ eye twitched and he fought the overwhelming urge to pull out one of his guns, but given the company he deemed it unfitting. He might shoot the kid later in his sleep if he was still mad.  
"Somethin’ like that," Texas gritted out, his own words making his wish to shoot ever stronger.

"Don’t you want any Italian food?" California asked curiously. Texas stared at her with indubitable confusion.  
"Didn’ we just have lunch, like, half an hour ago?" He asked, trying to make sense of the situation.  
"An hour and a half ago, come on give us credit," Illinois corrected.  
"These bastards kidnapped me," Romano told with his usual hyperbole.  
"Yuh came willingly," New York remarked.  
"You bastards dragged me here!" Romano shouted back.  
"You didn’t fight the dragging," California noted.  
"Why do you idiots even want to drag me here," Romano asked, annoyed by the states’ persistence.   
"Yuh’re de best of de nations," New York complimented. He genuinely did enjoy Romano’s company even if the feeling wasn’t inherently mutually.

"I thought you thought France was the best of the nations," Illinois teased, New York’s face going red at the statement.  
"Aight, I’m leavin’ now," Texas muttered, becoming uncomfortable with the turn of conversation and deeming the attention on him insufficient enough for his exit to be remonstrated.  
"Yeah, didn’t you say he was the ‘most charming of the nations’?" California joined in with the teasing.  
"Well, I mean—" New York started, rubbing the back of his neck abashed.  
"Your face is very red right now!" Italy giggled, also taking part with the teasing.  
"Like a tomato," Spain added.  
New York stumbled on some words before finally spitting out a coherent sentence, "I will pay yuh all tuh shut up," he said, his face redder than before.  
"You should pay me anyway, aru~" China said, pushing his acquisitive intentions as they became relevant.  
"I will pay yuh if yuh can make dem all shut up," New York directed his words at China, "and I have de money on me right now."

"Why are you carrying cash on you around the house?" California asked, temporarily forgetting about teasing New York for his crush, and becoming genuinely confused at the Eastern state’s doing.  
"Well dere’s nations here and I didn’t know how much I would have tuh pay dem to getcha tuh shut up!" New York exclaimed, the force of his embarrassment increasing the volume of his words.   
"You could pay me all of it, aru~, and I would shut them up very quickly," China stated, confidently.  
"Hide de bodies too and I’ll pay yuh extra," New York remarked, the redness on his face dying down as the conversation digressed.  
"How much are you giving, aru~?" China asked, enjoying the new turn in the conversation.  
New York pulled out his wallet, which had a little inked drawing of the Statue of Liberty. He blushed a little. "Well I have—"  
"Hey guys," Washington interrupted from the table, "your food is going cold."  
New York quickly put his wallet away (can’t leave it out in this house) and went back to eating his food. He wasn’t going to let his wonderful Italian food suffer such an ill fate.

——————————

Nevada prided himself on his ability to detect when there was a wealthy man, or a wannabe wealthy man within his proximity that he could promptly take advantage of and legally rob. So as he was traveling through the hallway, intent on arriving in the living room, his ears pricked up at the mention of affluence radiating from the kitchen. He stood by the doorway in such a manner that he couldn’t be seen, and overheard a wonderful conversation that made him completely forget about his current woe of no longer being a part of the investigation.  
Yes, it seemed that China man had quite the liking for money, a liking that Nevada could relate to. He was exactly the kind of person he wanted to see hooked and desperate at the floor of his casino. But with all the people in the kitchen, it would be impossible to properly convince the nation without his intentions being revealed by his siblings. 

It was then that he remembered the conversation he had been involved with earlier in the day with Alaska. The girl had promised him freedom to entice whatever nations he pleased without the consequences, and forgetting all the anxiety of Alaska’s fury and the tension that now stood, he sought out the girl.   
After a little searching, he found the girl happily conversing with the nation whom he believed to be Russia, beside the sunflowers in the flower garden. She was happily laying on her stomach and kicking her legs in the air, talking about something lacking importance with the nation, who also seemed to be enjoying the conversation. However, when she noticed Nevada, Alaska’s demeanor changed completely. He face became struck with anger, although in his daze Nevada failed to notice this. 

“Alaska, I’d like to discuss with you the benefits of the deal we made earlier,” Nevada stated, a suave seriousness in his voice. Instead of snapping, Alaska just flat out laughed. She stood up and stepped towards Nevada.   
“You think, that after the stunts you pulled today, that I would help you? Do you even know what you might have cost me in the long run?” Alaska asked a rhetorical question, a smile on her face that did not convey joy. It was then that Nevada woke from his daze, and realized what an idiot he was.   
“How did you know—“   
“I’ve been watching Nevada,” she motioned to her eye, where Nevada noticed there was a tiny device, a miniature camera or computer or something of the sort. Didn’t some of the states say the camera system had been interfered with?  
“If you dare ruin what I’ve been working towards, you will not be there to see the aftermath,” her expression turned into one that scared Nevada more than anything, a purple and terrifying aura developed around the girl. Nevada failed to make eye contact with her, his eyes wandering. They fell upon Russia, the nation watching the conversation curiously. 

“Does he know about your plan?” Nevada asked, trying to place himself in the better position, understanding thoroughly that the ground he was treading was a minefield.   
Alaska turned alarmed at Russia. She glanced at his face, which clearly showed elements of confusion. Her alarm died down.   
“Your mouth is to remain shut for the rest of the day and tomorrow. Your life depends on it,” Alaska said, turning away and walking back towards Russia. 

An undeniable sense of relief washed over Nevada, and sensing that there was no shame in it now, he ran away and into the house. He ran through the halls and into his room, where he sat on his bed in the corner.   
What a fool, what an idiot. How could he have been so stupid as to believe for a minute that he could play both the guilty and the detective? He may have been a man of two personalities, but neither was that of a fool. His breaths were deep, and he tried to steady his breathing and calm himself. What would have happened if the nation wasn’t there? What would Alaska have done to him if he hadn’t used the nation as bait to distract his sister. He brought his hands to his face. 

How incredibly stupid of him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you’re wondering about Oregon’s altering pronouns, it’s because they’re a demiboy! Please respect his identity!  
> I’m kind of sad, because this is the last chapter that really focuses on Nevada, and he’s undeniably one of my favorite states. 
> 
> *Language things*  
> • "La tua musica è vivace" - Your music is lively!  
> • "fratello" - brother


	14. A Decision

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anxiety and Italian food :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Because school/not actually school work is getting more serious now, the chapters may be limited to just Sunday. We’ll see.

Alfred didn’t know how difficult regular parenting was supposed to be. As a child, his frame of reference for what a family was like was both his own "family" with his brother and England, and then also human families, but both of those references were severely different. So, from a young age America understood that a family that included semi-immortal personifications of nations was rather unorthodox when compared to a regular human family.

From what he could tell though, his family with the states was completely different from any other nation’s family (obviously). The first thirteen states became personified as the American colonies became more solid and settled; as the borders and boundaries of the states were settled, and the people began defining themselves as from the states, his children became alive. America himself was very young physically and mentally, but even he couldn’t leave a crying child (whom he was sure wasn’t human) on the doorstep.  
Unbeknownst to him, that child was the first state: Delaware. As the child began to grow, slower than a regular child might I add, America began to see similarities between the child’s appearance and his own. By the time the boy was physically the age of five, he looked practically identical to how America had looked when he was small, minus the cowlick. Not that Delaware was the only child, no of course not. Within the span of one month alone, three children had shown up at America’s house: Delaware, Pennsylvania and New Jersey. The states themselves could never remember how on earth they made it to his doorstep, this being even more strange when you take into account the fact that America found all the other states in their territory meaning the children must have crawled to his door in Virginia or something else practically impossible for a toddler to do.

As the revolution approached the nation, he found himself up to his neck with children. Alright, maybe that was a lie, he only had thirteen after all, but for a teenager with very little life experience of his own, even with help from maids he was completely overwhelmed. After he won his independence, the land he owned increased the more it was explored and with that came more tiny children to look after (how did the other nations do this?). At some point or another, he began to accept the fact that he had a ridiculous amount of kids and even though he loved and cherished every single one, he began to dread taking in more. Did that stop him from taking more land? No, no it did not.

Needless to say, America had learnt to accept the fact from a very young age that he would never have a regular family like the humans did. Although when the states came into his life, a second realization hit him, the realization that his family life with the states would not be like any of the nation’s families either. Perhaps, he would set the new benchmark for the world?

Or maybe the family was destined to be unique.

——————————

Russia was never one to be shocked by the world and its happenings. While certain things would catch him off guard or maybe cause him to rethink an ideology or two, even the most surprising of occurrences would never leave him in a state of confusion and amazement. And yet, watching the small look-alike child threaten her older brother (who seemed to be nothing but a mountebank) Russia found himself out of words.

It was not that he was horrified or disgusted by the small girls actions, he would have done a similar thing in such a position (maybe with a bit more violence), but the child had been so innocent and happy in front of him, laughing at his accent, enjoying the sunflowers, telling him about her hobbies and happy memories. When she had become angry at her brother for what he could only interpret as a betrayal of sorts, her personality had flipped entirely and a fear-inducing aura had enveloped her.  
Russia wondered briefly if America knew about this side of the child. A voice in his head whispered that of course he would know, he had raised Alaska and been a predominant part of her life. But another voice whispered that a child with that drastic of a polar personality would know how and when to conceal it.

"Sorry about that. Nev doesn’t quite understand the gravity of this situation," Alaska said with a smile as innocent as ever. It was the sort of smile a small child would wear after hearing delightful news or after seeing something small and shiny, not after threatening a person by holding their life over their head on a dangling string.  
"What makes situation have so much gravity?" Russia asked. The boy, Nev, had clearly used him to distract the poor girl, and the look of alarm that had crossed her face could indicate nothing else than the fact that he played a major role in whatever the girl had been up to behind the scenes.  
A similar look of alarm crossed the girl’s face, except it was much more tame and controlled, as if she knew the panic could be averted with wisely-spoken words. "It has to do with the nations and the hotel. I wouldn’t worry too much about it, as long as everything stays how it’s meant to it’ll all turn out fine. Nev just needs to understand that, and I think he does now. I never knew he could run so fast," she giggled a little at the idea. He had been so terrified that he had sprinted the second he could. She would have laughed at the time if she weren’t so overcome with the anger of betrayal.

"I don’t believe that снежинка. Why do you have camera over your eye?" Russia queried.  
Another, slightly more unbridled wave of alarm rushed through Alaska. With all the built up fury, she had become so bent on threatening her brother, that her surroundings had fallen null to her, and she had uttered words she should not have. She mentally slapped herself for her stupidity.  
"I need to make sure everything is under control. Surely you understand that?" She proffered, hoping to use relatability to disguise her misdeed.  
"Kol kol kol, so Amerika was right, you were the one to mess with cameras," he smiled a little more forcefully, easily picking up the girl’s attempt at disguising her actions.  
Alaska sighed, obviously caught. Again. "Yeah but it was necessary. How else would I have known that my siblings are trying to get me in trouble?" She crossed her arms, "Anyway, Noah’s gone and so we can put the conversation to rest. I still want to tell you about my botanical garden." She sat down beside Russia, but didn’t relax. Her spine was still straight up and her arms were still tensed as if ready to pounce and choke a person on cue.

Russia himself was still suspicious of the child. She hadn’t lied, yet she had obviated the need to lie by using ambivalent wording. The only people who needed to do that were those with something to hide, and now Russia had been placed in the center of whatever drama the girl was creating. He enjoyed spending time with the girl, she was wonderful and they shared a lot of interests, but he could no longer view her a such an innocent child.

No, she had much to hide.

——————————

Unlike many of her siblings, Maine was not one to overlook any situation. She never misjudged the seriousness of any happening, and would spend time going over the possible outcomes of different responses. One could suppose that was why now she was sitting on the edge of her bed with her head resting mildly uncomfortably on her left hand.  
In hindsight, telling Nevada to forget the situation was a stupid idea, but in her defense her observational skills hadn’t come with the ability to see into the future, and thinking ahead took time and effort. Maine wasn’t close with Nevada, but she knew him well enough to determine now that by letting the investigation fall from his main interests, it would leave him with the want to take advantage of the situation for other reasons. Now, she prayed he was still alive. 

She stood and exited her room, the walls were not helping her mind supply answers. Her brain was plagued with a multitude of unhelpful thoughts, and so she decided to go and find someone to talk to. Who would be helpful to discuss this with right now? Maine thought deeply, but no states were immediately jumping to mind, forward thinking and logic were not common traits displayed amongst her siblings. Pennsylvania maybe, she was in the army after all; she clearly knew about strategy. But then again, Penny was someone who became uncomfortable with emotional drama such as this. Montana could be useful, but Montana avoided placing herself in the midst of social conflict, so that was also a no.  
Texas crossed her mind for a second, and Maine had to take a second and stop her walking to laugh at the idea. She laughed loudly and seemingly randomly, and if she were in public she would’ve been marked as unstable or unaware of social norms. As if Texas would help in a situation like this. Sure he was sturdy, honest, and had more than a brain cell and half, but one mention of Alaska and he wouldn’t give a shit.

"What’s got you so laughy?" Came a voice behind her, which Maine instantly associated with New Hampshire. Turning, she saw not only New Hampshire, but Vermont as well as to be expected. The two were partners in crime, peanut butter and jelly if you will. And as the closest states to Maine, perhaps she could talk to them about everything, they knew more about her than anyone else under the circumstances of mere proximity.  
"Texas," Vermont gave her a look that communicated her confusion, "Oh no, nothing he did. There’s some problems with Alaska and I was wondering who to talk to, and I thought that Texas could help." She told. Maine couldn’t help giggling at the idea again, and that in itself appeared to display her thoughts.  
"You need to get your brain replaced," Vermont remarked, repressing a few of her own laughs, "What did you mean by ‘problems with Alaska’?" She asked, both curious and looking for an excuse to change the subject.  
"I’ll tell you, but not inside. Something, or someone, told me that maybe we’re being watched." Maine suggested, leading the two outside.  
"Oh yeah, that’s not creepy as shit or anything," New Hampshire commented, not freaked out by the notion of being watched, but maybe a tiny bit... disturbed.

Once the three were outside, they relaxed in a particularly warm and sunny spot, taking in the heat like lizards. Or at least New Hampshire was, and made a comment about the fact.  
"You guys know that the nations are staying here yeah?" Maine started.  
"Sure~ do. Massachusetts was pissed," New Hampshire recalled, remembering his brother’s semi-tantrum.  
"Well I did some investigating, well with Nevada, and according to Hawaii, Alaska was the one who orchestrated some elaborate scheme to keep them here," Maine enlightened the two states before her, one looking a lot more shocked than the other. "Hawaii also told me that apparently Alaska wants Dad and Russia to... get married."  
"Wait what‽" and "The fuck‽" were the equally intelligent responses Maine received simultaneously to her statement.

"Hold up, I saw Nevada sprint inside looking terrified earlier. Think those two are related?" Vermont discussed.  
"Oh fuck well, may Nev Rest In Peace. RIP little bro, you will be missed." New Hampshire remarked. Vermont slapped him over the head, a wince of pain being elicited.  
"Most likely yes," Maine chimed in, amused at New Hampshire’s deserved pain. "I just... don’t know what to do now. Like obviously I want to tell Dad, but he’s under so much stress and Hawaii isn’t the most reliable source of information. What if I just stress everyone out for no reason." She vented. Maine looked to Vermont, who was thinking over her words carefully.  
"Does it seem like the truth to you?" Vermont asked. Maine gave her a confused look in lieu of a response. "I mean, do you think that whole thing with Alaska wanting Dad to marry Russia is what is actually happening?" Vermont rephrased, clearing up her thoughts.  
"It makes sense to me." Maine concisely answered.  
"When in the ever loving fuck have you been wrong about something you thought was true?" Vermont stated. Maine thought about her sister’s words for a minute. It was true that most times when she came to a conclusion she was never wrong, however today’s problem just felt like an outlier. How could she trust her own conclusions when half of them were dependent upon second hand information she had gathered from questionable sources?

But then again, it really did seem like the truth. Alaska never became too close to any of her siblings, save for Hawaii perhaps, however she always seemed eager to look up to people. She had latched onto America before she knew what emotional dependence was, and it seemed only the natural progressive step for her to want another parent or parental influence in her life. That plus the fact that she never really understood what social norms were...  
"Trust yourself Maine-y! And if you aren’t going to tell Dad, then I’m sure as fuck going to because this is weird as hell and I don’t want the Russian lingering around the house. Fucking commie," New Hampshire reassured her, receiving a second slap over the head.  
"Don’t be racist," Vermont scolded. "But I agree with him, you need to trust yourself." Maine nodded and stood.  
"Alright, I’ll tell him. This needs to end now. Thanks you guys," Maine said walking back inside. However, instead of turning left and heading straight to her father’s office where she supposed he would be, she decided to take the long way so she could properly think over what words were best to say.

——————————

Virginia had led England through various winding hallways, and despite the labyrinth of a layout, the girl had not yet fallen short of courage in her step. She turned left than right, walking the halls which England assumed she had memorized a long time ago.  
They stopped in front of an old looking door, and Virginia opened it causing a horrific high-pitched creaking sound to spread out into the whole space. Inside the room, there were rows of bookshelves, each filled with ancient-looking books and tomes. On the left-most side of the room, there were cabinets, all closed except one which appeared to be filled so much that it could not close properly, that or it stored something bulky and unwieldy.

The room looked exactly like an old summoning room, such as the one in England’s own house.

"Put this on," Virginia said monotonously as she threw a dark cloak at England, uncaring of whether or not he caught it or it fell to the ground. He put on the cloak and observed that it fit him perfectly. That was... odd.  
"It’s best to cover up your clothing, some of the things in here aren’t as docile as they first appear, and you don’t want your clothes destroyed. Also beware of some of the books, they bite." England was aware of these things already, he performed magic himself but he said nothing about this. The commanding air in the girl’s voice was a silencing.

As he walked forward, intent on investigating the tomes, England became aware of the myriad of summoning circles detailed on the ground. There were four and each was quite impressive, the one the closest to the center of the room was practically identical to his.  
"Don’t mind them, you can walk over them." Virginia told.  
"I am aware. I do magic as well." England commented, hoping to stop her from making further comments at him as if he were a neophyte. She apparently didn’t notice.  
"New York likes using a different one each time he casts a spell, which in my opinion is gratuitous." Virginia walked up to one of the shelves and pulled down a book. She felt for the attached bookmark and opened up to a page towards the middle of the book. England felt curious about what it was she was reading, but decided it was better not to ask.  
"I’ve been wondering for some time if magic in Europe is different from that in America. Although it seems similar, there are—" Virginia’s sentence was interrupted by the sound of various items falling to the ground. She whipped her head up quickly, and her face grew red with anger.

There was a boy standing by the door who had been caught in the act of spying, presumably knocking over several things as he did so. He had ashy brown hair that fell upon his face untended, and it looked like it hadn’t been brushed for at least a month. Rather than the blue eyes of America, the boy had green eyes that matched England’s and Virginia’s. If they hadn’t been at America’s house, England would never have thought the boy would be related to America in any way. But given the circumstances he knew instantly the boy was a state.  
There was an awkward silence for a beat and then, "God FUCKING damn it Wevy! What are you doing here‽" The girl next to England exploded, almost dropping her book in her rage.  
The boy looked startled by the outburst for a split second, and then relaxed placing his hands comfortably in the pockets of his jeans. "Uh, what do you think I’m doing here?" He asked.  
"Annoying the hell out of me! Did you follow us‽" Virginia cried.  
"I was coming to talk to you, then you and the you-looking guy scampered down to the basement and I decided to come to." The boy, ‘Wevy’, explained his actions.  
"Well you’re not invited, go back upstairs!" She commanded, but the boy seemed indifferent, deciding instead to introduce himself to the Brit.

"Name’s West Virginia. The cooler Virginia if you want," he commented reaching his hand out to shake with the gentleman, not that he ever got a chance to as the girl went rabid on him.  
"Don’t fucking say that you piece of shit!" Was the first of many in a series of angry swears and insults.   
"That’s not a way to make a good impression, so bloody stop," England said, playing the role of the adult in a situation where it was very much needed. Virginia ceased her tirade at hearing the Briton’s disapproval and straightened up.  
"Yeah lesser Virginia," West Virginia prodded, the girl’s eye twitching with the want to punch her little brother.  
"You’re clearly England. Don’t need to introduce yourself. You look enough like her for it to be obvious," West Virginia said with a look of pride strewn across his face, "got the same eyebrows too. Hope they aren’t contagious." It’s not that the boy was trying to sound rude with his words, his intention was to be humorous, but his more country attitude paired with the formality of the Brit made the latter become offended. Still he maintained his demeanor of being a gentleman.  
"No, I don’t believe they are. Now I think that it would be best if you went back upstairs," England gritted out, Virginia smiling a little at the man’s agreement.

West took a long look at the two before him, maybe spying and following them hadn’t given off the greatest first impression.  
"Fine, dont summon any demons though," the boy shrugged his shoulders and turned back towards the door, "you can’t perform an exorcism for shit." He managed to make it out of the room and close the door before the book that had been thrown could hit him.

——————————

To say the Italian-made pasta had been gleefully eaten would be an understatement. The states had already been euphoric by their reunion with Romano, and the Italian brothers had also enjoyed their time with the states, although one was a lot more vocal about it. China had also enjoyed the company, the Westerners still being a little too rowdy for his tastes but he deemed this company more enjoyable than the other Americans. New York had even had a discussion with him about his culture and had spoken Chinese with him, which had been surprising.

"I’m sure I made y’all lunch an hour ago," came a voice from the doorway. The voice belonged to Louisiana, a state the four nations in the room were familiar with, however beside her stood three states they were not familiar with.  
Two were boys with a similar skin color to Louisiana’s. One had chestnut brown hair and those blue eyes of America, and the other had black hair that was mostly kept out of his face by a red bandanna, who also had those blue eyes of America. The fourth state was a boy with lighter skin and blond hair, a darker shade to America’s, that covered his right eye in a similar manner to New York’s hair.  
"You did, but like we wanted Italian," California waved off her older sister’s comment, placing her dirty dishes in the sink. Louisiana did not seem pleased.  
"You better do those dishes and clean up the kitchen or I ain’t making you dinner for a month." Louise stared her down, until California quietly took a hold of everyone else’s dishes and began cleaning them. The boys with brown and black hair snickered.  
"You would make her dinner," Washington disagreed from the far end of the table.  
"Nah, she’d let her starve," said the boy with black hair with another snicker.  
"Have you ever met Louise?" the blond boy asked rhetorically, gesturing to the state mentioned.  
"Oh no, I’d let her starve." Louise averred. The blond boy clearly did not believe her but let the subject drop anyway.

"Holy shit, Romano!" The black-haired boy exclaimed upon noticing the Italian’s presence in the room, "When did you get here?"  
"When all the other nation fuckers did," Romano grouchily responded.  
"When did they all get here?" The brunet boy asked.  
"Right about when I made everyone here lunch," Louise said, arms akimbo.  
"It wasn’t just you, Dan helped." New York added. Louisiana just gave a displeased look.  
"Cool, well you three are nations too right?" The black-haired boy asked, gesturing to Spain, Italy and China in turn, receiving three distinct responses of verification. "Cool, I’m Alabama. Sweet to meet you guys!" He shouted forcefully.   
"I’m Mississippi!" The brunet boy shouted just as forcefully. The two seemed incredibly similar.  
"Guys, can you maybe chill?" The blond said, stepping forward to introduce himself, "I’m Arkansas. Nice to meet you." Arkansas said with an earnest smile.  
"Ve~ it’s nice to meet you too!" Italy replied, thrilled by the boys’ excitement.

"You four know y’all are staying here tonight right?" Louisiana checked. She assumed they knew but still wanted to make sure anyway, it was best for the house guests to be in the know.   
"Unfortunately," came Romano’s response.  
"Good," Louisiana smiled.  
"Ain’t it strange the hotel closed down though?" Mississippi opined, the events of the day being less than expected.  
"The hotel did what now?" Alabama asked, having not have heard the rumors which were spreading like a wildfire amongst the chatty Americans.  
"Yeah, it ‘closed’," Illinois said with air quotations to display his non-existing belief in the words.  
"Apparently Alaska has something to do with it," Washington said mindlessly, being met with an awkward silence after. "What?"  
"What do you mean she had somethin’ to do with it?" Louisiana asked, pausing from walking towards the kitchen sink to help California clean the dishes correctly.  
"Well, it’s only a rumor," Washington became nervous with the increased attention placed upon her, "but it sounds like Alaska closed the hotel to keep the nations here and that Nevada had something to do with it as well..? It’s all just a rumor I know nothing," she said, waving her hands in front of her face anxiously.  
"Why would she do that?" New York inquired.  
Washington stumbled over a few of her words, "W-why would I know, i-it’s all just.. just... I—" she paused and looked away, mumbling something along the lines of "please stop."

Arkansas sat down next to the girl, his movement breaking the room’s focus upon Washington.  
"Whatever’s going on, Dad’ll solve it, like always," he said, most of the tension escaping the room as it’s occupants tacitly decided to let the subject drop at the benefit of the nervous girl.  
"He sure will!" Mississippi proclaimed loudly. "Also, you guys made Italian food but didn’t make any for us? What the fuck guys?" He asked, swiftly changing the focus of conversation.

"Yuh weren’t in tuh room! Of course we didn’t make none for yuh," New York defended, waving off his brother’s complaint.  
"You guys always go on about how great your food is, why don’t you make some for yourself, kitchen’s free now," Illinois said, motioning towards the now-clear bench thanks to California’s cleaning (that Louisiana had redone during conversation due to the poor effort).  
"I just made food an hour ago. You cannot be hungry," Louise stated in disbelief and displeasure.   
"Hungry!" Alabama shouted, resulting in most of the room to laugh.  
"Alright well if you’re going to use the kitchen, we should head to the game room, I want to like beat New York’s ass in a game or two!" California cried punching said state’s arm lightly.  
"Yuh ain’t even got a chance," came his response.  
"You guys like coming?" California asked as she raced out of the kitchen, New York tailing closely behind her. Illinois shook his head then him, and the nations in the room followed.

——————————

"And where were you?" Wisconsin asked as Michigan entered the upstairs lounge room and made himself comfortable on the couch closest to the eastern wall. Honestly, Wisconsin didn’t care too much about her older brother, the two sharing mutual feelings of acknowledgement over their closeness in proximity but not much else. The two states both didn’t care too much for any of their siblings, but out of all of the states they were the most close to each other, which was rather weird given my previous sentence.  
"Talking," was all Michigan offered in response. It wasn’t a lie, he had in fact been talking. He had been saying goodbye to their Uncle, who had decided he had no interest in staying around if there was tension between Alaska, America and Russia. Canada, being unfortunately located in the middle, decided he wanted nothing to do with the drama unfolding, but still vowed to himself to call and check up on everything tomorrow to make sure his brother was handling everything alright.

"Wow, what an interesting answer," Wisconsin replied as she sat down on the couch opposite Michigan with a book that she had carefully chosen to be dull enough to not to be distracted while she talked, but still interesting enough to give her an excuse not to make eye contact during conversation.  
Michigan sighed and leaned back on the couch, relaxing his body. "There’s something wrong with this family." He said, placing his hands over his eyes.  
"No shit Sherlock," Wisconsin’s statement subtly encouraged Michigan to elaborate, not that he wouldn’t have anyway.  
"Alaska’s messing with the nations, Nevada and Maine are freaking out about it," Michigan let his arms fall limp to his sides again.  
"Not surprising in the least. Alaska’s psychotic, Maine’s too curious and caring for her own good, and Nevada’s a dipshit. What did you expect?" Wisconsin asked sarcastically, turning the page in her book that she hadn’t actually read.  
"To drink tea with Uncle Canada and be left the fuck alone." Wisconsin snorted at her brother’s statement. As if that could happen in this house. "I’m so fucking tired of it here. I want to go back to my state," Michigan carped.  
"Well you’re here for another month and a half so suck it up princess." She smiled with schadenfreude.

If only this day didn’t feel like a century.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Maine and Washington have anxiety like me because I’m desperate and self-reflect.  
> Arkansas is baby. No you cannot change my mind.
> 
> *Language things*
> 
> • "снежинка" - Snowflake


	15. A Really Weird Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Word gets around that Alaska was the one behind all of the schemes, and there are different reactions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy shit, an update ‽  
> That’s right, online school is over and my will to love has returned.  
> Next chapter will be shorter, but will be posted early.
> 
> I cannot write a Minnesotan accent and I shan’t even try, I’m sorry.

There were times in the past where America was convinced that he should never have been allowed to parent a child, let alone 13, let alone 50. Whatever higher power being or beings did or did not exist made a series of stupid errors, which America both treasured and questioned. Given that America was a child himself it wasn’t destined to be a simple task, but he did what he could.

Normally, America thought highly and praised himself for his parenting abilities, seeing that his children were all reasonable and stood up for what the believed in; they each knew what it was that they stood for.  
Then there were times where he had to have a sit-down chat with his eldest daughter about why stabbing a man was not morally acceptable for a child to do, even if they were British and they were at war. Pennsylvania went absolutely nuts when she was finally given permission to stab as many British men she desired to on the battlefield. America had internally cringed at the child’s abnormal willingness, and just took a step back.

Sometimes, America would sit with his children, having a picnic or just watching the sky and spending time with them. They’d make jokes, and if Hawaii were there, she would make flower crowns for everyone. America would watch his children laugh and be inundated with a rare sense of peace and security.  
And then there were times when his children would point guns at each other’s heads on the battlefield, in the serious desire to destroy each other. America would feel his body fill with pain and horror, as a wave of uncertainty and fear washed over him.

Needless to say, while America sometimes questions why he had been assigned the responsibility of raising children, he learnt to appreciate the moments when things were calm, and to dread the moments when things were not.

Parenthood was truly a wild ride.

——————————

The "Three Musketeers", as they had nicknamed themselves, were running through the halls of the DC house playing tag, New Mexico was currently it. Oklahoma, New Mexico and Arizona had been quick to latch onto each other when they were first personified; they were the only ones of their siblings around their age. They had bonded with the other states, picking up a couple of role models and close relationships, but that would never shake the idea that they were much younger and thus didn’t make the best company for their older siblings. On top of that, Alaska and Hawaii were usually off doing their own things, so the Three Musketeers it was.

New Mexico’s prime target for the game was Oklahoma, however the boy was smaller and had an inexplicable agility (why, he had no idea) and tagging him wasn’t an easy challenge. Oklahoma, ran through the halls, twisting and turning through the various corridors, and eventually ran into the games room where the nations were watching California and New York battle each other in any game they could get their hands on. Despite her words, California was not in fact succeeding in kicking New York’s ass.

Oklahoma froze upon seeing the nations in the room. It took him a second to recall that he was allowed to talk with them, unlike other strange people who would sometimes come to the house, but he still did not move. He knew only two of the nations by name, Romano obviously being one, and Italy thanks to his over enthusiastic greeting that morning.  
No one in the room was currently paying attention to him or had noticed his entrance, until New Mexico ran into the room, crashing into him and knocking them both to the floor. The collision alerted the others to their presence in the room, and faced with all of their watching eyes New Mexico gave a shy and apologetic laugh.

Oklahoma’s courage returned all at once in one great wave, his face lighting up with excitement.  
"Hi everyone!" He called, a giggle accompanying his statement.  
"Hello again!" Italy responded, equal enthusiasm in his words.  
"Oh what are you doing?" Oklahoma asked, standing up and running towards New York.  
"Kicking Cal’s ass," New York responded, shooting a smug glance towards his younger sister, who shot him back a very displeased glance of equal energy at hearing her words used against her.  
"Can I play, can I play?" Oklahoma begged, bouncing up and down on the spot as excited children do.  
"Okie, we're playing tag," complained Arizona as she helped New Mexico up off of the floor, the latter child pretending his head did not spin as he stood.  
"Actually, me and Okie were playing tag, you couldn’t keep up with us," New Mexico teased, his sister shoving him back onto the ground at his comment.

Arizona inspected the nations in the room. Romano, whom she knew, was sitting beside... Spain? she presumed from what the former nation had told her many years ago. Italy was sitting next to Illinois, who had decided to relax after being stuck in the middle of New York and California’s competition for a few games. And China, (she presumed once more) was sitting on the far couch and— ooh he had cool hair.  
"What was your name again?" The man next to Romano asked, sounding innocent, the spanish accent conforming her aforementioned suspicions.  
"I’m Arizona! Nice to meet– re-meet you!" She responded, holding her hand out to be shook, which it was after a solid second.

"Is it true you guys are staying here?" New Mexico inquired, simultaneously trying to tug Oklahoma out of the room so they could continue their game of tag, the boy refusing to budge. They weren’t going to end the game with him being it, no, he wouldn’t let the game end until he had successfully tagged Oklahoma.  
"It is aru~. I worry that I may go deaf from all the noise. Why do you all yell so much?" China asked his own question.  
"Most of the noise comes from Ohio, Florida or California," Arizona pointed at the mentioned state in the room, "and they’re all really weird and annoying. We don’t like them either," she affirmed. California smiled and shrugged off the statement.  
"Ohio scares me, more than Florida," New Mexico quietly added, Arizona nodding in agreement.

"Wait, you guys are staying?" Oklahoma asked with pure innocence in his voice. He hadn’t heard the rumors that had been circulating around the house, not that he often paid attention to rumors and gossip. It wasn’t in his interest what his siblings were doing, however he definitely found interest in the nations staying at the house. "Since when?"

"Since Alaska fucked up the hotel," came the most eloquently-put answer from Ohio. The girl was leaning against the doorframe, a sinister but plain look cemented on her visage. The girl had a talent for being both terrifying and incredibly, incredibly dull at the same time; a rarely mastered duo.  
"Alaska did what?" Romano asked, his voice plagued with both irritation and shock.  
"Dunno. I was listening to Maine talking with dad. Apparently Alaska’s the one to blame for this shit." She chuckled to herself a little, "Not me this time. See, I’m not the disappointment of the family."  
There was an awkward silence in the room after her statement, Ohio smiling unbeknown. New Mexico finally pulled Oklahoma off of his point, and tugged him out of the room to continue their game, and escape Ohio.

——————————

France, Utah and Colorado were happily conversing (Wyoming being mostly ignored), the topic mainly surrounding tourism. Utah and Colorado’s civil rivalry played a major part in the two’s relationship and conversation, although the rivalry was incredibly strange on its own. The two were close, their bond built on mutual feelings of competition and respect. 

"You can aggrandize your state as much as you want Beehive, but your GDP isn’t nearly as high as mine." Colorado boasted, arms crossed against his chest.  
"GDP doesn’t mean nothing, it’s just because you’re more well known, and you have a greater population," Utah attempted a rebuttal, but only fueled Colorado more.  
"I am more well known. I wonder why?" He asked rhetorically, the sarcasm and pride in his voice mixing well and overflowing into his words. France smirked a little at the boy’s confidence, keeping to himself his own GDP for the sake of prolonging the entertaining conversation.  
Utah scoffed, "At least my GDP isn’t as bad as Wyoming’s!" Utah defended, briefly pointing to Wyoming before forgetting her presence in the room again.  
Wyoming sighed, "That’s not very—"

The door to the den room opened with a quiet but audible combination of squeaks, cutting off Wyoming as per usual. The three interlocutors and Wyoming turned to see who had opened it. Standing at the door was a girl with short, brown and wavy hair that hung over her face wearing a comfy hoodie and skirt, another girl who was dressed a little nicer, with long pink hair (a lighter shade than Utah’s) tied into a ponytail, and a boy with smooth blond hair and blue eyes that shone like America’s. The conversation in the room halted and Utah narrowed her eyes in a playful, competitive nature. 

"Midwesterners." She worded.   
The boy stepped forward, looking a little exasperated, "Why are you guys in our room?" He asked, pushing aside the hair that fell into his face as he did so.  
"It’s not your room, it doesn’t belong to anyone Show-Me," Colorado refuted, his voice sounding dull but his face showed he was amused, finding Utah’s play seriousness funny.  
Wyoming started, "Actually it belongs to—"  
"We always hang out here, you guys don’t," the girl with light pink hair responded, a thick accent coating her words.  
"Who are you?" The girl with wavy brown hair asked France in a decidedly monotone voice, ignoring the argument going on beside her.

France approached the girl, taking her hand into his own, "Je m’appelle France," he said with his French smile. The girl raised an eyebrow but showed no other expression of emotion, "and who might you be?" He asked.  
The girl pulled her hand out of his and let it fall to her side.  
"I’m Iowa," she said, not offering any further words.  
France turned to the other two new faces, hoping they would offer a little more of an introduction. The boy took initiative, stepping forward and offering his hand to be shook, which France took.  
"I’m Missouri, it’s nice to meet ya," he greeted warmly. France became confused.  
"Your name is... misery?" He questioned.  
Missouri laughed, "Nah, nah, Missouri," he intoned slowly and carefully to make sure the difference was understood. "I hear that a lot, or well, people make fun of it," he laughed once more, this time to spite his feelings towards the joke.  
"Et vous?" France proffered towards the girl he still did not know.  
"Name’s Minnesota," The light pink hair responded.

"Right then," Utah clapped her hands together, a face that was both friendly and scary, "Now that we’re all introduced, get out!"  
"How about you get out," Minnesota responded, her demeanor a more perfected version of Utah’s, with a complimentary mixture of both sweet and vicious.  
"We were here first, therefore we should get to stay. It's very simple North Star." Colorado rebuked, the smile still planted on his face.  
"You guys know we hang out here, so why would you come in here in the first place?" Missouri asked with genuine curiosity. "Besides wouldn’t you guys rather be, I don’t know, outside?"  
"I was about to ask you that," Utah told.  
"The room’s big enough for all of us." Wyoming managed to speak a full sentence, "We could just—"  
"All of us would rather be outside," stated Iowa, cutting off Wyoming as per usual, "we don’t spend a lot of time in here even though we’re here basically everyday. Now we just want you guys to leave because it’s an easy opportunity for a mild argument of no value to make us feel better about ourselves," She averred, voice steadily unemotional.

The fight– well not fight exactly as both of the opposing parties knew that there were no serious connotations within their words– continued on for the next few minutes.  
France decided that, while the conversation was entertaining, his presence had been largely forgotten in the room at that point, and because the day was fleeting, he couldn’t waste too much time in the background when he could be meeting other of his beaux neveux. Thus, he left the room, offering a little wave to Wyoming, who was shocked at the minor attention, but still left forgotten by the others in the room.  
She sighed heavily, and let her head fall onto the coffee table before her. 

——————————

Louisiana’s day had been easier than she first anticipated. The months she spent in the DC house were always long and exhausting; she had built up a reputation among her family as being both motherly and responsible, and so oftentimes she was entrusted to look after some of the younger kids. And by "look after" I mean make sure they don’t die, supervise them when they want to leave the house, and make sure Alaska doesn’t beat a man to death or break into the White House. Today, however, America had told all of the states to stay within the boundaries of the DC house property for sake of ease, and so for the most part her day had been quiet.  
Cooking lunch had been enjoyable as well. With Virginia too distracted with the nations to carp about wanting to help, Louise had been able to cook peacefully. When Maryland came into the kitchen to help, it had taken from her the responsibility to feed the entire household plus the nations all by herself, and so it became an easier task as well as a peaceful task. Maryland was also a wonderful conversationalist.

An hour or so after lunch had been served, she had found California, New York and Illinois cooking with some of the nations, which had been a little insulting considering she had just made food (but Romano was there and Louise knew her siblings all but worshipped him). After that, Alabama and Mississippi had decided to cook food for themselves, doubly insulting, however Louisiana decided to stay with them as she did not trust either of them not to set the house on fire. Alright, maybe that was a bit harsh, but the DC house had been set on fire multiple times, a lot of times actually. It was almost like an annual tradition at this point.

And so now she sat at the table closest to the kitchen, keeping one eye on the two boys who were chatting quite loudly and shoving each other playfully, and her other eye on the cards she held in her hands, as she played against Arkansas.  
Arkansas was surprisingly good at card games, at all games actually. He had a strange adeptness at knowing/predicting his opponents strategies and intentions. It was a shame this skill didn’t apply to the world outside of games, for he was quite gullible at times. He had a kind and trusting heart, as did a lot of the "county" states.

Louisiana broke out of her thoughts as Arizona, New Mexico and Oklahoma ran into the room. The three’s previously interrupted game of tag being once more interrupted at the smell of food exuding from the kitchen.  
"Ooh! Food!" Oklahoma exclaimed as he ran straight into the kitchen and stood beside Mississippi.  
"I want some!" Arizona cried, pulling New Mexico with her by the wrist as she too ran into the kitchen.

"What is with y’all today? I made everyone food not that long ago, you’re not gonna have any room for dinner!" Louisiana yelled exasperated, standing up. Her cards dropped out of her hands, and Arkansas gave them a glance, smiling as his suspicions were correct.  
"But I’m hungry," Oklahoma whined. Arizona and New Mexico made sounds of agreement.  
Louisiana sighed but said nothing, shaking her head and sitting down again, picking up her cards and shooting Arkansas a disapproving look.

"Louise is probably going to cook something really good tonight for dinner, especially with the nations here, and y'all wouldn’t wanna not be hungry," Arkansas stated, paying no attention to Louisiana’s disapproval.  
"Talking about that," Louise straightened, her tone of voice shifted from annoyed to questioning as she remembered the conversation they had had earlier. "What was all that talk about Alaska at the hotel?" She asked, motherly concern shining in her voice.  
"Oh hey, we were just talking about that!" Oklahoma pointed out, a wonderfully innocent smile on his face. "Ohio said that she overheard Maine and Dad talking about what Hawaii told Maine that Alaska did!"  
"Apparently she ‘fucked up the hotel’ to quote Ohio directly," New Mexico said, receiving a brief rebuke from Louisiana for cursing.

"That’s not what I heard," Arkansas put forth, "I heard that she got Nevada to shut it down. Apparently she offered him ‘something he couldn’t turn down’."  
"Are you quoting someone? That sounded like you were quoting someone," Mississippi responded, not at all caring about the element of seriousness about the comment that Arkansas had made. Arkansas shrugged, turning back to look at his cards. Louisiana stared at Arkansas with wide and disbelieving eyes.

"I smell food!" A voice exclaimed from the doorway of the kitchen and dining room. The voice belonged to a girl wearing country-style clothing and had red hair tied in twin braids. Beside her stood a boy with long blond, messy hair tied into a pony tail. Both were wearing matching million-dollar smiles and had the same eager look in their eyes.  
"You do indeed Tennessee, and you see, you smell food because there is food," Mississippi commented.  
"Yeah, if you and Kentucky want to help us cook, I wouldn’t be opposed to that at all," Alabama commented, his words themselves being innocent, but there was a hint of flirtation in his voice. Mississippi smacked him over the head. (Sweet home Alabama plays suspiciously in the background.)  
"Yeah, we'll help. What is it that you’re cooking though?" Kentucky inquired, surveying the progress that had been made. 

Louisiana stood up and slammed her hands on the table, a lot harder than intended; the room fell to silence as the states all turned to look at her.   
"I’ll be right back," she declared, her voice shaking slightly.

——————————

Louise ran into the living room, seeing that it was currently empty, and was the next room over. Why on her easy day did Alaska choose to cause trouble? Surely this wasn’t her fault, right? Louise sighed and slumped down onto the couch, letting her head fall into her hands for a few minutes.  
She looked up, and the shadows on the wall began moving as Louise called for them. They morphed into three shadow silhouettes of people who weren’t there, and the shadows themselves moved as though free from the entanglement of light and darkness. Louise looked at them, and the shadows silently gestured for her to instruct them on what to do.  
"One of you go to the hotel and survey what happened there. Only notify me if it’s damaged in some way or if someone is hurt." She stood and took another deep breath. One of the shadows raced out of the room. "Don’t let yourself be seen," she hastily cried, hoping that the shadow had heard her.  
"You two," she turned to look at the shadows who were still waiting for her command, "Keep an eye on Alaska, don’t let her leave the property again. If she does, bring her back. Do not let the nations see you." The two shadow silhouettes left the room after the command was received.

They had a job to do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hehehe voodoo :)
> 
> If you were wondering, California and New York we’re playing Smash Ultimate, and New York is a smart bitch like me who plays as Kirby.  
> The three musketeers share one brain cell and New Mexico has it 99% of the time.
> 
> I want to explain my reasoning for Iowa’s personality. There was this kid at my school from Iowa, and she was incredibly dull but in a weirdly interesting way(?) and I wanted to try and replicate that although I failed.


	16. Time To Talk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> America finally finds out that Alaska is doing sketchy shit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I thought I would have this chapter out early but it’s late because I procrastinated.
> 
> This chapter takes place before Chapter 15.
> 
> Also whoopsie. I accidentally let my Rusame hand slip. Nothing explicitly Rusame but just a tinsy bit.

It’s difficult to pin down an exact reason why America kept his children hidden from the world, all of the small anxieties seemed to amalgamate into one hideous fear that kept hold of him. And it was because reality was a confirmation of those fears, he continued to push the states further and further away from the world’s watchful eyes.

He knew that his connection with the states and his protectiveness over them could easily be used against him. If ever such a situation would occur, America would be wrapped around the enemy’s finger, doing whatever they wanted to ensure the safety of his kids. Not only would that be catastrophic for his nation and ideals, the thought that his opposition to another nation could put his kids in danger was a guilt-filled horror; the thought that they could get hurt because of occurrences that had nothing to do with them.

Along side that, there was also the idea that the states could get too attached to one of the nations and... leave (ironic he supposed). America had decided a long time ago that this fear was a lot less realistic compared to his children being hurt, but it still scared him anyway. America was determined to remain a parental image in each of his kids’ life, and would always go out of his way to make sure he was. The thought that another nation could be more of a prominent part of one of his kids’ life than him filled him with a sort of parental jealousy.

Needless to say, with every child he took under his wing, he grew more and more worried for their safety. It was always a difficult task for America; learning to manage those parental fears and not letting them get in the way his children’s freedom.

But he will perfect to balance one day.

——————————

America knew the day was about to get longer when Maine quietly entered his office, twiddling her thumbs, displaying that something was clearly troubling her. America sighed and put his work on pause to give his daughter full attention, because as a rule of thumb Maine did not come to his office unless there was something wrong that she could not solve herself. It was a wonderful trait of hers, the ability to solve her own issues, a trait America wished his other children had as well.   
Maine sat down on the chair across from America as he organized his papers that he had scattered across his desk during his work into a pile. It seemed like some cruel onset that the day he begrudgingly invited the nations to the DC house was also the day where his government decided to bombard him with work. The stress from the work and the anxiety of the nations being at his house with his children was an unpleasant combination. 

The girl seemed incapable of holding eye contact, a side effect of the guilt from bringing a problem to her clearly troubled father, and America felt guilt himself at the sight.   
“What’s up?” He asked in a surprisingly soft voice that still held the same upbeat energy as it normally did.   
Maine took a deep breath, “Alaska closed the hotel the nations were staying at,” she stated in a brief gathering of confidence. At seeing the shocked look on her dad’s face, that confidence slipped away and suddenly the desperate need to elaborate took over her. 

“Uh w-well you see, Nevada came to me saying that Alaska asked him to close the hotel because Alaska promised him– uh a-and he asked China who said that he saw a girl who Nevada said was probably Alaska and Alaska wanted to spend time with Russia and then I asked Hawaii and she said that Alaska wanted to you to marry Russia so that—“  
“Wait, what?” America interrupted at the last claim, silencing Maine’s ranting as her face went red from embarrassment. That is not how she hoped this would go down at all. She looked down and kept her glance glued to the floor. 

Thoughts were racing through America’s head faster than Maine had ranted, his brain trying to make sense of everything. 

“Alaska closed the hotel the nations were staying at.”

“Nevada had closed the hotel because of Alaska.”

“Alaska has been there.”

“Alaska wanted to spend time with Russia.”

“Hawaii knew.”

“Alaska wanted him to marry—“

Alaska was an incredibly bright girl, she had intelligence greater than her siblings despite being much younger than them. However, it was common knowledge around the house that Alaska didn’t always use her intelligence for, what he would consider to be, the morally-right reasons. She was a high-functioning sociopath with behavioral tendencies that unnervingly resembled those of Russia. Seeing the two of them together had been a shock to America’s system, all of those resemblances laid out for him to see clearly rather than being inferred. 

"Alaska wanted him to marry... Russia”

America was well aware that Alaska desired people to look up to. However it was rare for her to find anyone, with the subconscious knowledge that any human she admired would die, and she didn’t really admire any of her siblings how most children would. She found them agitating, Hawaii being one of the only of her siblings she could tolerate. So it was no surprise that the logical next step would be for her to connect with another nation whom she could admire and who wasn’t likely to die any time soon. So when she had met Russia, the nation that looked just like her, had similar interests and traits to her, and enjoyed spending time with her, it made sense that she would become attached... but...

“Alaska wanted him to marry Russia!”

His cheeks were red now. Slowly everything made sense.   
Oh. 

“You’re sure that’s what’s happening?” He asked dumbly, knowing full well that is exactly what was happening. He just didn’t want to believe it. His baby girl...  
She has hacked the cameras. He had seen it and talked to her about it. 

“I wasn’t for a bit but... yeah I am,” Maine said looking up at him for a moment before looking away again. 

Despite everything, America took a deep breath, forcing his voice to sound calm and controlled. “Alright, I’ll get it sorted out. You can leave now if you want.” He forced a reassuring smile, and Maine met his eyes before making her way out of the room hastily, the office door closing with a soft click.   
Outside of the office, he could hear the dulled voices of Maine and Ohio. Maine sounded reserved. Ohio was probably fishing for information, as was customary for her. 

America leaned back in his chair and groaned, covering his eyes. Of course life had to throw one more problem at him right now.   
Alaska wanted him to marry Russia, because she resembled him, acted like him, looked up to him and somehow in the span of a few hours, became attached to him and never wanted him to leave.   
That sounded about right, considering it was Alaska. 

America surveyed his desk and his work that laid upon it. He had maybe gotten through two thirds of it, maybe more. He stared at it in a dull and resigning matter. America picked up the stack of papers and moved it into the corner of his desk. Yeah, he was not going to finish that today. There was no way. 

After a minute of stalling, he stood up and made his way out of his office.   
He had a problem to solve now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fuck the U.S government bro, BLM.   
> But happy birthday America.


End file.
